Full Spectrum
by Sonic Sunshine
Summary: Hannah struggles to find peace in her hectic life, but the surfacing of old 'friends' and new powers isn't helping her cause! DISCONTINUED.
1. The King and I

**Disclaimer**: Most of the characters and locations in this story were created by The Neopets Team (TNT). The Ninja (MobianHero) made a few, mechanics like the spectrum that she doesn't care if used anywhere else. This story is only to be posted here, on under this account. If you really want it posted somewhere else please Neomail on the account listed in this profile.

**Warnings**: Severe bashing of about the entire Meridell cast ahead! Rated for cursing, minor drug use (Yeah, we all know what's in the grog TNT.), gory violence, and HIGHLY suggestive themes in the later chapters. It might be a lemon, might not. It might be slash (of an unexpected pairing), might not. Haven't decided.

As for the plots that will be mentioned here ... HatIC, CoM, LDP, BFM. No Darkest Faerie because The Ninja's doing something special with that later.

Enjoy.

* * *

**Session 01**: The King and I

* * *

Knock. Knock. " Hannah? " No response. The knocks became louder. " HANNAH! " 

Armin heard a bit of groaning on the other side of the door, but it didn't sound like she got up. He opened the door and found that she still slept. " Hannah, it's _noon_. " Actually, it was an hour past noon by his watch. The bori walked over to the queen sized canopy bed and reached out for his friend's shoulder--

SMACK! Armin recoiled, holding his nose from the hit he received in pain. Hannah opened her eyes groggily moments later, then gasped. " Armin ... " She forgot that the bori was living with her! Taking a napkin to her hand, she started to wipe the blood away from his nose. " I'm sorry, kiddo, but you can't go sneaking up on me like that. "

" Sneaking? " The bori winced. " I've been screaming for you at least ten minutes! " He sniffled once she removed her hand, clearing his nose of any remaining blood. " A girl from The Golden Dubloon came by this morning. "

Hannah slipped out of bed, wearing a long white slip that needed some minor adjustments. " What did she want? " She asked in annoyance. " I still have a month of leave, and I'm spending every hour of it. " After all she's been through on Terror Mountain Hannah was in no hurry to return to work, or anywhere else for that matter.

" She said a group of people were looking for you, and they looked pretty important. " Hannah motioned for the hairbrush, which he handed off to her. " I got a little curious and went to see for myself. You won't believe it ... "

Hannah brushed her hair, still not convinced that it was anything to waste her time with. " I might. " She said with a shrug of the shoulders.

" There's king there! I mean he was a fat and ugly king, but he was a king none the less. He had soldiers, and Unis, and all kinds of stuff. " He counted off on his claws. " One of the barmaids said they were running up a big tab too, so that translates into a lot of money. "

" Or lack thereof. " Hannah commented before throwing her freshly brushed hair over her shoulders. " I'll check it out. Just give me a minute or two to get dressed. "

Armin nodded, closing the door as he left the room. Honestly, Hannah didn't want to bother herself by returning to The Dubloon so soon. Her mind and body were still worn down from her journey halfway across Neopia. Not only that, but she hadn't been feeling quite herself as of late. She didn't want to worry Armin, so she didn't tell him that her arm still ached from time to time. It became much worst, as if provoked, by certain things ...

Wrapping her permanent mark in a gauze was the last thing she did before putting her coat on to meet Armin downstairs. She didn't want to think about what it could have meant, but the thought lingered in the back of her mind.

* * *

Jeran just cupped his head into his paws, not believing how the King behaved while on his 'vacation'. The knight was one of the king's biggest supporters and critics, so had to make it his duty to come as a diplomat for his kingdom. " Napkin. " Holding out a handkerchief to the Skeith, who snatched it into greedy paws. He didn't know he Skarl wiped his mouth with the napkin or _ate _it since the sound of his chomping just didn't stop.

" ANOTHER, wench! " Roared the King, causing the Aisha who waited on them to wince. " Bring out some more of that sauce, too! " He let out a bloated chuckle. " No wonder you pirates out here are so skinny! This food goes right through ya! " 

The Aisha folded her arms, eyes narrowing. " Right away, your majesty. " Her voice held a bit of venom to it, but the King and his Knight didn't seem to notice. Just as she turned to leave two familiar faces scrolled into the tavern. " Oh thank Fyora! " She groaned, running across the floor towards Hannah and Armin. " I don't care where they go, but get them the hell away from me! " She begged Hannah as she gave her a hug. 

Hannah laughed at her friend, enjoying seeing her sweat for once. " Angie, wait. " Putting her hands on the taller Aisha's shoulders to push her to arm's length. " Who are we talking about again? " 

" HEY! " Roared a voice from over the Aisha's shoulder. " Did you get the seafood platter, yet? I don't SMELL seafood platter! " The knight groaned, and Angela just held a thumb in their direction. 

Hannah nodded in understanding. " I'll try my best. " She didn't know if she could make them leave, but at least she could move the heat off her friend. As a barmaid in a rather shady district of Neopia they get yelled at ... a lot. Once Angie made it into the kitchen, she looked back towards Armin. " Those the guys? " 

Armin looked up at her with one eye, holding his sensitive ears. " Yuh-huh. " And with that he followed Hannah over towards their table. 

The Knight, a blue lupe in gold armor, greeted them both with a frustrated nod. " Good afternoon. Can I help you? " His voice was strong and held a strong accent, so he definitely wasn't from around here. 

" I heard you all were looking for somebody. " Hannah didn't want to tell these two that it might have been her. For now she played the part of the curious bystander. 

Still, the lupe looked surprised that she'd ask such a bold question. " Yes, we are. " He moved his chair a bit closer to the two so he could speak comfortably over Skarl's eating. " We heard rumors that one of the barmaids here fought in a recent war, and had a terrible burden befall upon her. " 

Armin didn't like this situation at all. He sensed something was amiss as soon as they walked into the bar. " Hannah ... " He whispered as he pulled the girl's sleeve. 

She brushed him off gently, giving him a reassuring look as she continued. " I don't see why she'd be so important. That war happened almost a year ago, and a lot more people got displaced after the second Maraquan war anyway. " She reminded him, not buying his story for a moment. 

Jeran knew as much, and had to blame his lame story on the King again. Still, he'd have to stick with the plan. " But none of those people were cursed with something that may not understand. It's a pain and burden they have to live with for the rest of their lives, and our trained alchemists might be able to ease her suffering a little. " Hannah couldn't stop herself from reaching for her marked arm in time, so lay her hand over the burn not visible through her long sleeved shirt. " Are you all right, miss? " Jeran noticed this immediately. 

Hannah looked at her arm. " I'm fine. I just injured my arm a few days ago. " She lied, hoping that he would buy it. 

Armin heard a hushed whisper from the window, so looked away from the conversation and towards the windows. In the center one, around the windowsill, he saw a yellow ear twitching. His icy blue eyes narrowed, and he let go of Hannah's cursed hand to reach for his slingshot ... 

" That's too bad. " Jeran's voice showed sympathy, but was it sincere? He offered a bare hand towards her. " Can I see? I think I have a potion or two that can speed up the healing process. The potions in Meridell are a bit more pungent than what you can find out here. " 

Hannah was caught, her eyes widening in horror. She looked around to Armin for support, but he seemed to be distracted. Cursing under her breath, she'd unbutton the button holding her sleeve tight to her wrist to roll the fabric neatly up to her shoulder. The mark was covered in gauze, but it bled regularly after all of this time. It left a light imprint of dried blood on the bandaged surface. 

Sometime in between, Skarl stopped eating. 

" May I? " Hannah winced to his obvious question, but didn't deny it at this point. He reached out for her arm and removed the bandage carefully, revealing the deep red mark that was burned into her fur. Jeran made no mention to the mark or it's pattern. The lupe disregarded it completely as he took out a common healing potion to rub over the burn. 

Armin noticed that the yellow ears moved again, but this time so he could see the face. Instinctively he took out his slingshot and readied a shot, holding the pulled back sling low and in front of him, but didn't raise it when he saw the face. It was a female yellow Aisha, young, who wore thick glasses that cast a glare on her eyes. She seemed to be looking at something rather deeply, and didn't seem too threatening. Armin sighed and put his slingshot away. 

His mannerisms wouldn't allow him to strike down a pet wearing glasses anyway. 

Done. " Jeran smiled as he tied off the end of the bandage. " That was a rather nasty burn, but you didn't wince once. " He said thoughtfully. " You must be a very _brave_ girl. " He stressed the word 'brave', and it made Hannah shudder. 

" Yeah. " Hannah smiled awkwardly, taking a step backwards. " My friends call me brave. " 

" That you are! " King Skarl finally spoke, finished with his meal at last. Standing from the table, he gave Hannah a rather rough pat on the head. " It was a pleasure meeting such a sweet girl around this dump. Most of the girls here are really stuck up. Can you believe that? " 

Jeran cast a wary eye towards Skarl. " Your majesty ... " 

" Come Jeran! " Skarl ignored Jeran's words completely and started towards the door. " I just remembered something wonderful that we must see on this island, and the day grows old already! " He cast a look over his shoulder towards the exhausted Aisha who was serving them all day. " And we just HAVE to come back here for Dinner. " Angie didn't know if he was serious or toying with her, but it made her blood boil none the less. 

Hannah let out a relived sigh, starting to clean up the dishes on the table the two were sitting at without noticing. It was just an instinct of a barmaid. Out the corner of her eye she noticed Armin looked quite distressed. " What's up, kiddo? " 

Armin didn't look at her right away. He noticed the Aisha by the window calling out to somebody, Jeran, then running off. " I'm scared ... " His voice seemed distant, then he looked back up to Hannah. " I don't trust them. What do they want with you? " 

The usul shrugged her shoulders. " They might just be curious to what happened on Terror Mountain. " She said passively. " You know those big military types. They want to know everything about everything. "

" I'm not too sure. " Angela said as she took up the plates and mugs from the table. " Meridell has hit on some hard times on the financial and military front, Hannah. I was surprised they had enough to pay their tab. " Bringing herself erect, she'd say in a softer tone. " I heard a lot of rumors ... " 

" What rumors? " Armin was highly interested in everything that was being exchanged. He was frozen in ice for thousands of years, so didn't know much about the world around him. 

" Well ... "

* * *

King Skarl and Jeran headed back to the inn with a couple of new additions in tow. " Well Lisha? " Jeran asked his sister, the yellow Aisha spying on them at the tavern. 

Lisha nodded, bouncing her glasses nearly off her face. " That was definitely the mark of Tu-Kuept on the girl's arm. " 

Jeran passed a look towards their King. " What are your orders, your majesty? " 

" We're taking this one by the numbers. " King Skarl said, placing a claw under his chin. " Keep watch over her to see if anything develops, and report it to me immediately. Hopefully things will go according to plan, but if not. " 

Jeran never liked the alternative. He noticed that she kept a very young and protective child around her, and after spending so much time with Lisha and her friends he didn't think he could bring himself to hurting him. " Yes, your majesty. " He looked down to Lisha and her friends; Kayla the Zafara, Borris the Blumaroo, and Morris the Quiggle. " You do your part too. I know it's a lot to ask of you, but ... " 

Kayla winked at him. " No problem! I'll do my best. " 

Borris bounced off on his tail, almost hitting Jeran in the face. " You can't expect any less from us Knights! " 

" We're _squires_, not Knights. " Morris reminded his friend while throwing his hands behind his head. " But if we do good here ... " 

Jeran knew that was coming, so smiled. " Maybe. " He thought it was about time for a promotion anyway. 

Still, Jeran had to be skeptical towards his King. Skarl only told them what they planned to do here in Krawk, but not what they were going to do with her if she agreed to come back to Meridell. The knight heard rumors too, but none of it was anything good. He knew that the King was protective of his people, but did that make him hungry for power too? 

Either way, if they had to go down the alternative route this would step out of bounds of country security ... 


	2. Kill Him

The Ninja decided that in order to promote more activity in this section she'll review every story on the front page (and incoming stories for now on). The Ninja willalso be posting in this story a few times a week as opposed to once a week. Whenever a chapter is done, most likely. That'll mean shorter chapters,but oh well. 

Enjoy.

* * *

**Session 02**: Kill Him ...

* * *

_I love you_ ... 

Miles below the surface of Krawk Island a heated battle was coming to a close. The green furred Acara could hear the labored breathing of her quarry, closing in on it with a tinge of remorse in her heart. Her heels against the damp floor of the cove caused the Tigermouse and his Moonfade thieves to scatter. Masila paid little heed to them; having no desire to kill them anymore than him ... 

But she had to do it. 

_Damn it!_ Kanrik pulled himself up with the assistance of a stone pillar, clutching his bleeding stomach with a trembling hand. That double crossing wench! He should have known that she'd pull something like this. To say that he felt a little foolish for trusting her would be the understatement of the year. 

To add insult to injury the acara was planning to talk his ear off before putting him to death. " Don't tell me you're going to die cowering in a corner likea scared gelert, Kanrik. " He searched from the safety of his hiding spot, and noticed she was alone in the center of the cavern. Her goons must have taken shelter in the shadows. " I thought I brought you up better than that. " 

Her voice took on a dreamy tone. " You were going to be my husband some day, and we were going to rule this world together. Then, you had to throw it allaway at the last moment. "She finished witha pout. " Ask yourself; was it worth it? " 

" Lord Kanrik. " The voice was so close the gelert jumped. Crawling out from a small hole came a small blue mynci. " Dez is gonna be a failed op-par-rate-tion. " Valin wasn't one for words, among other things. 

The guild leader knew this already. " Tellthe others to fall back and await my orders. " He whispered, taking in a shaken breath. " I'll hold them off as long as I can. I refuse to let our organization fall to her. " 

Wait a second! Did that mean ... " Youz gonna stay and fight them ? " His squeaked. " Youz can't do that. Youz be killed up pretty bad! " 

" If I am ... " Kanrik bared his teeth in lu of a more audible show of his pain. " Then carry out the plans as ordered. " His yellow eyes found Valin with great difficulty, his vision already starting to blur from the loss of blood. " Tell her ... everything. " He waited for the smaller pet to nod his understanding before drawing his twin blades. 

" Now go before she spots you ... "

* * *

Angela told Hannah and Armin about the plights of the Meridell Kingdom since they 'found' the Darigan Orb. Hannah came to the conclusion that whatever happened from there was their own fault for being greedy, but Armin didn't think so. Armin actually felt sorry for Meridell because of their ruler. 

" Lord Darigan was a good man at heart who became amonster on the outside. " He mused as they returned home. " But King Skarl is a normal pet on the outside with the heart of a monster ... Does that make him any better? " 

" I don't know. " Hannah said cooly as she dug for her key. " But I do know that the King's a jerk for the way he treated Angie at least -- There it is! " The usul pulled a skeleton key from her brown bag and went to the lock, but stopped an inch from the keyhole. 

Armin looked at his friend. " Is something wrong? " 

The usul's eyes narrowed. " The door's unlocked. " She said before nudging the door, which yielded with little resistance. " The lock was picked. " Lock picking seemed to be a common skill around Krawk Island (with all the treasure chests and dungeon doors to open and all), and a skill one pick's up at a very young age. 

Immediately the girl expected foul play, soshe reached under the hem of her skirt to pull out a dagger with a blade almost twelve inches. Armin gave her a weird look of course, in which she smiled. " A girl's got to be prepared. "_When you live on an island filled with criminals and weirdos_, she thought aside. " Cover me. " 

" You're going in first? " Armin cried as he pulled out his slingshot. 

" Pfft. " Hannah opened the door completely and stepped into her home. " Like I'm going to let some little kid die because he wants to be a gentleman all the sudden. " The baby bori blushed, and she stifled a giggle. 

There was a definitely noise coming from the kitchen, so they'd investigate there first. Moving in closer on the intruders, Hannah noticed that they had a strangely familiar scent. " Hold on. " She whispered to Armin, pushing him back against the wall as she pressed against it. " Stay here. " Hannah ordered him softly as she peeked around the corner. 

Once. 

Twice. 

The would-be robber had his back turned towards the entrance, so she could sneak up on him if she remained low and used the cabinets and island in the middle of the kitchen as cover. Once behind him she noticed he was ... making a sandwich? 

No matter. He was invading her house, and she'd do her best to defend it. Suddenly he'd find a small hand over his mouth, and the blade tohis through. That was just fine because he didn't scream, he whimpered in surprise. 

It couldn't be ... 

From here she could get a good look at him, slowly turning his head back so she could look him in the face. 

" Jackie? " Armin looked on from a distance, and noticed the shock on his friend's face as she pushed him away unharmed. " What the hell are you doing here? " She screamed at the red kyrii. 

The Kyrii took itas a sign that his life was not in danger, and took a bite out ofhis sandwich. " My name is Jacques, _moi petite_. " He said with playful irritation in his voice. " And before you pulled a knife on me I believe I was making lunch. " His voice held dignified properness to it despite his occupation as a pirate. 

" Don't play dumb with me. "Hannah leaned against the counter,tapping her blade against her hip. " You two hopped ship nearly ten years ago, so why are ya'll back all the sudden? " Her tone was dead serious. " Came to cash in on someone else's life? " 

Jacques looked at Hannah pitifully. " Please don't be like this, Hannah. " 

" How else am I supposed to be? " She snapped, her eyes burning. " You two aren't any different from the rest of those good for nothing dogs. " Blinking slowly, her eyes brimmed with tears. " I thought you were my friends,but I guess I was screwed over ... again. " 

Armin couldn't be a spectator in this anymore. He quickly moved to comfort his friend, wrapping his tiny arms around her waist when he wanted to hold her by the shoulders. " Hannah ... " The bori felt helpless on what to say. " Are you going to be okay? " 

Hannah sniffled sharply, wiping the tears from her eyes before they fell. " This is Jacques. " She felt it better to change the subject than think about the past. " He used to be a friend of mine before he decided to run off and go against all he was taught. " Armin noticed the hurt in the Kyrii's eyes, but didn't say anything. " Jackie, this is my friend -- " 

" Armin the Small. " Jacques nearly stuttered on his words. "I've heard about him. He's the little guy who saved you up on Terror Mountain, in the war. " He nodded as he took another bite of his sandwich. " I'm relieved to see that he isn't your son. " 

Armin noticed the hold Hannah had on him turned intoavice grip. " Trying to say something, Jackie? " She growled bitterly. 

The Kyrii raised his hands, and sandwich, defensively. " Nothing at all! I just heard ... rumors. " 

" Rumors? What rumors? " Hannah was perplexed. Before all of this she was just another serving girl, so why would people spread rumors about her? 

Jacques blushed a little. " Well you see ... The only reason we came back was because-- "

* * *

And so we have a cliffhanger! This chapter took forever to upload because is having uploading problems. GAH. -- 

The Ninja thought it appropriate to make a note of a few things; a **lot** of nicknames/pet nameswill be used throughout this story. There's some significance around some of them, which is why they deserve an Author Note once in a while. 

Just so people won't get confused, here's a list of common ones that'll be used so far: 

- **Angie** - Angelais her real name, but Hannah shortens it. 

- **Jackie** - Hannah's mispronunciation of Jacques. 


	3. The Meeting

This chapter is incredibly long since it's one of those origin chapters, so it's broken into two parts. Here we find out how Hannah got involved with Garin, Jacques, and got the motivation for killing Captain Bloodhook. Meh, there's a little bit of mature content towards the middle ... but nothing that'll make people squeamish hopefully.

The slanted text at the beginning of some of the sections are Hannah's words.

**Writing Process**: At this point chapters 1-7 are written. :D

* * *

**Session 03**: The Meeting

* * *

" He thought I got **married**? " 

Hannah didn't know how to feel about that revelation. One side of her was highly confused to why his captain would even care if she got married or not after all this time, but that quickly turned into anger. Still, there was another feeling she wanted to deny. It was an emotion she shoved aside years ago in hopes it'd never resurface.

" It's none of his business if I get married or not! " She couldn't let her guard down about this now, not after holding her footing for all these years. " As far as I'm concerned we have nothing else to talk about on that front. "

Jacques breathed out a sigh. " I understand that, but he doesn't. You don't know how hard this has been for him. "

" Hard? He's the one who breeches my trust and he says that he has it hard! He's out there living that damned dream of his, so I say let him live it! " She spat, pulling Armin along by the arm. For a moment she forgot that this was her house.

" Can you at least talk to him? " Jacques cried, forgetting about his meal in hopes of saving his friend.

Hannah stopped at the doorway of the kitchen. " He isn't worth my time. " Her voice cold, she'd take a step forward. " Make sure you wash your flith from my dishes before you leave. "

Armin took his friend's hand with hopeless confusion as they left the kitchen, traveling down the hallway to the den where she'd collapse on the couch. He could've sworn he heard her sobbing, but he couldn't see her face buried in a pillow. " I near saw you act like that towards somebody. " And he was there when Kanrik showed up in the Ice Caves! " That Jacques guy must have hurt you pretty bad ... "

His lady friend pulled herself enough to speak. " It wasn't Jackie that hurt me. " She started with a sigh. " His best friend did. " At the moment she couldn't bear to think his name without feeling irreversible pain.

The Bori could do nothing but try to comfort her though he had fleeting thoughts of finding the one who made his friend cry and making them pay. " Do you want to talk about it? " He asked as he pulled her up into a sitting position. " The elder said it helps to share your pain with one you can trust. "

Hannah slouched on the couch, holding her cheek with a bare paw. " That's true. " But she hadn't told anyone about her childhood, absolutely no one. They knew nothing except the subject was taboo in the brown haired pet's mind.

" If you must know his name is Garin ... "

* * *

_I couldn't say that my childhood was a happy one. My mother died of illness weeks after giving birth to me. My father, a pirate, ran away like a coward the moment he knew she was carrying. He never wrote, he never visited, and never took the responsibility to take care of me. My mother's father, a pretty old explorer, was the one who took care of me. My grandpa was pretty rich and famous before he took me in, and he sacrificed everything for me ... _

_Ultimately, his life at the hand of my uncle. _

_Bloodhook was his name, and he's a pirate by trade. At the time he was the most powerful and feared pirate in all of the world. His ship, The Black Pawkeet, was the most fierce crew that ever lived. They had absolute power over our territory, but they wanted more. Bloodhook wanted rights to my family's legacy, a glorious treasure hidden in the caves under Krawk Island. My grandfather wouldn't dare surrender it's location to them, so they did the unthinkable ... _

_They killed him, and they took me as their prize. I knew by instinct where the treasure lay, but was too young to travel into the caves on my own. In the meantime Bloodhook made me a servant aboard his ship; scrubbing floors, cleaning weapons, making meals, and singing to amuse them. _

_My suffering continued for years, until we ported in a small fishing village where Bloodhook hoped to collect 'insurance money' ... _

" Wench! "

Hannah, ten years old at the time, hurried through the corridor of the ship in search for Bloodhook. She found him leaning against a railing; the Pirate Eyrie grinning wickedly as the small usul knelt at his feet. " Yes sir? " Her response held no real emotion, having long since bottled it all away.

" Today we will be going into port. I have my own business to attend to in the nicer part of town, but you're expected to fulfill your duties as always. " Bloodhook threw a pouch full of money at her, chuckling as the heavy sac bounced off the girl's head. " There are some orders of food and ale waiting in the marketplace to be picked up, and we need more cannonballs and rope. Stock up the ship, then clean it top to bottom, and I expect it all done along with our dinner before sunset. "

That was a tall order to fill, but the girl pulled off miracles before. Bloodhook only had to punish her once, and only one, for her to learn not to cross him. " Yes sir ... " She said as she put the pouch in her pocket.

At that point she expected Bloodhook to leave her to her business, but she didn't get off easy. Much to her horror he reached down and took her chin, lifting her head so he could look at her face. She didn't dare look at him, too ashamed of what he forced her to become.

" It's a shame you're not a few years older, wench. " Bloodhook thought aloud as he forced her head to the side, but this time she struggled. " You would make a fine wife if you weren't so damn stubborn. " Disgusted with his ill fate, he pushed the girl back onto the deck before leaving.

* * *

_I wanted to cry, but I wouldn't allow myself to cry outwardly after that first round of 'punishment'. I couldn't give him that kind of satisfaction. I did my duties knowing that Bloodhook only kept me alive to see me suffer. This had gone far beyond the need to acquire a treasure that might not even exist. He wanted to see me cry, or cower, or even completely give into his twisted desires, but I wouldn't degrade myself. _

_I had to keep going. _

_For my mother who kept me alive at her own expense. _

_For my grandfather who lost everything. _

_And for myself and everything to come. _

Hannah held the reigns of her only friend aboard The Black Pawkeet; a uni she affectionately named Dunequeen due to her sandy pelt. Dunequeen, like herself, was another spoil from a raid years before she became a member. Due to a throat injury she could not speak beyond whines and grunts, but she didn't need to for Hannah to understand her.

They walked solemnly on the boardwalk overlooking the beach where children around Hannah's age, all little boys, played. It wasn't a matter of segregation for the children, but they were hardly past the age of thinking that boys were infested with Mootix and girls with Kooties. Hannah knew it not to be true, and actually preferred younger boys to the older men that she dealt with in everyday life. At this age they were virtually harmless.

But when they grew up ...

" WATCH OUT! "

Dunequeen saw what was happening before her young friend. She reared back on her hind legs, yanking Hannah back and out of the way of a fast flying gormball that bounced roughly off a very unfortunate wall. It bounced off and landed at the feet of the two serving girls just as the group of boys playing with it ran up to the edge of the boardwalk.

" Hey girl! " One of the boys yelled as he climbed onto the planks of the boardwalk. The boy is a yellow haired usul with a blonde mane that covered his chest even through his shirt. " You should watch where you're going, girl. Brandon almost decked you one good! "

Hannah looked down at the group of boys over the side as she knelt. Brandon must have been the orange buzz near the back that smiled sheepishly when she looked. " I am sorry for being in your way, then. " She said swiftly as she picked the water filled ball from the ground. " I have some business to attend to in town, so I'll just be on my way. "

" Hold on a minute! " The yellow usul boy looked at the girl's face, despite her best attempts to avoid his eyes. " I never seen no girl like you around here before. " He noted as he went around the other side to look. " Nope. None of them are half as cute as you! "

The boys chorused a disgusted 'EWW' as Hannah gained a bright pink hue along her little snout. Did he really mean that, or was he just teasing?

The yellow usul noticed the blush and grinned wickedly. " Now ani't that sweet, looks like I'm not the only one who's smitten! " He teased as he poked one of her heated cheeks.

Hannah yelped, shrinking away in surprise. " I don't know what you're talking about! " She squealed, hiding her face in Dunequeen's mane.

" You don't, eh? " The usul's tail swayed swiftly behind him, as if he was thinking. " That's a real shame. I was going to invite you over to play with us, but since you're so clueless you must be as bad as those other girls in town. "

Timidly, the dark blue eyed usul peeked through her friend's mane. " Play? " The word wasn't one she associated with, and the custom was foreign to her.

The boy raised an eyebrow. " You know what 'play' is, don't you? " Hannah shook her head. " Oh come on! It's like when you and your friends do a lot of fun stuff. Like we were playing Gormball and it's pretty fun, 'specially when the ball explodes on Jacques. " He leans in close for the next part. " He screams like a little girl when he fur gets wet! "

That got a giggle out of Hannah, and the usul flashed a grin. " So, do you want to play? "

For a moment Hannah forgot about her duties to Bloodhook and his crew.

For a moment she remembered that she was indeed a child.

" Yes ... " Dunequeen looked at her wide eyed, but she continued. " Please. "

Nodding, the boy reached around to lead her away from the uni. " You can cut out all that 'please' and 'thank you', stuff. We're not no one famous or rich. " That made Hannah's heart swell. These children weren't going to judge her. " The name's Garin, by the way. I'm sure you have one ... "

She had to think about it. Years of hard labor with little respect or love dubbed her 'wench' or something just as terrible by the lower ranking members of the crew. Her memories of a happier time in her life returned, and with that her name.

" Hannah. My name is Hannah. "

_Garin introduced me to his friends, and soon we were all playing a game of Gormball like old friends. Jacques was damn near determined not to get soaked, which was rather hilarious since the other boys kept passing to him. Much to our surprise he won our little tournament and got to suggest the next thing we do. It took only a few hours for me to learn all of their names and unique personalities, as well as how things worked in their little group. _

_As it turns out they are all orphans like me, but didn't allow themselves to be captured and sold off into servitude. Instead of striking out on their own they banded together and supported one another, like a family. Garin lead this little family not because he was the oldest (in fact he was the youngest one amongst them), but because he was brave enough to do anything to ensure their survival. He broke his friends free of prisons, stole food and coins from the vendors, and told outright lies to any law enforcement that may have come to intervene. _

_I was incredibly envious of their determination to make things work out. I didn't know it at the time, but it inspired me. No, **he** inspired me._ _It was because of Garin that I was able to break free of Bloodhook and live without fear. _

Armin listened to Hannah's story intensely. " That's amazing! " He bounced up and down on the couch. " But, didn't you get in trouble for showing up late to the ship? "

Hannah placed a hand on her lips as she tried to remember. " Heh. Now there, kiddo, is where the story gets interesting. "

* * *

Yeah. The Ninja realized this is an **incredibly** long set up for a love story by now, and we'll still not get into the bulk of the story until like ... chapter 7-ish. If it makes you feel any better about the direction of this story, things are about to speed up in the action department. What's a story about corrupted kingdoms and war without senseless violence:D 

On the review front, The Ninja _thinks_ she hit up every story on the front page. If she missed one, or you want her to review yours, just send her a neomail. It's important to let others know how their stories are, after all.


	4. You and Me

Another short chapter to balance out the longer one. This isn't the end of the flashback scenes. Hannah can't avoid Armin's questions forever, you know. 3

**Process**: Chapters 1-7 finished.

* * *

**Session 04**: You and Me

* * *

_The had took on a beautiful shade of gold by time our play had ended. Jacques explained to me that during sunset many of the street vendors start closing shop for the day, so it was an opportune time to search for scraps of food. It was only then that I remembered that I had a home that I needed to attend to, and a very angry eyrie waiting for me once I got there. Fear of punishment sent chills down my spine, and just as Garin started towards the boardwalk I realized that I was in over my head. _

_I started to cry ... _

" Hannah? " Garin looked back to her when he heard the first sob. He wasn't sure what was wrong, so he guessed. " Didn't I tell you that we can all play together tomorrow after the morning rush? "

The brunette shook her head. " Bloodhook's going to kill me. " She sobbed into her hands. " I messed up bad ... "

Garin's eyes grew wide. " Bloodhook? " He gasped. " CAPTAIN Bloodhook? " Hannah nodded, choking from her hysterical crying. " He's the meanest pirate ever to roam the seas, ever! What does he want with a little girl like you? "

" He's my uncle. " She raised her pink tainted eyes to look at him directly. " He doesn't treat me like family, though. " A new trail of tears ran the tear stained path down her cheeks. " He treats me like a slave ... " She whispered.

Thinking over her situation deeply, Garin's eyes softened in a mixture of sympathy and pity. Just a few hours ago she played along with the rest of them like she's supposed to, but now she has to go back to that. She'll be beaten, or worst, and it was all his fault. If only he hadn't invited her to play ...

And for what? Just because he thought she was pretty?

Despite the clots of dirt loosened into muddy patches by exploding gormballs and her frantic state of mind, he thought her more than just pretty. He had never seen anyone with the type of hair she had, or those kind of eyes. There lay something inside of him that causes him to feel very strange when he looks at her, which only grew during the rare times she looked at him.

He made his decision.

Before Hannah could slink through the crowd and away from him, he grabbed her by the upper arm and pulled her back. Stunned, Hannah looked back into his determined eyes with her widened ones.

" If you don't like the way he treats you, don't go back. "

The ease that Garin said that almost made her retaliate, but instead she settled from her tensed stance. Oh, how she wished it was that easy. Ever since she started playing this morning she secretly yearned to stay here and become a member of their family. Here she would still have to work for her keep, but this time it'll be by choice and the pets around her would love her.

Love her ...

Love ...

Hannah's ears twitched, and she looked into the crowd of the boardwalk with horror. " They're coming for me. " She couldn't breathe! Her voice came out just enough for Garin to understand her words. Their scents, it was definitely the men from the crew!

Garin didn't think twice about it. Grabbing her hand, he'd pull her towards the elevated boardwalk. There was just enough space for them to crawl underneath while the people and pirates walked around overhead. Hannah curled up on her knees, holding her stomach as nausea from her anxiety set in. She felt like whimpering, but Garin placed his hand over her mouth to make sure she didn't give away their position.

Two pairs of blue eyes; one dark while the other light, searched the crowd as each member of the crew stalked back and forth. Dunequeen was among them, looking a bit worst for the wear. From time to time she looked between the cracks, directly at them, and then looked away. Her eyes were pleading with them ... praying to the faeries that they wouldn't get caught.

Finally, Bloodhook crossed the boardwalk. Hannah tensed, leaning against Garin for support when he stopped directly over them. It was unnatural; almost as if he could sense that they were there.

" WENCH! " The infamous eyrie roared, causing the commoners in the streets to scatter. " I know that you are here hiding like the scared little rat that you are. I will not waste the time my nor my crew's time tearing this pathetic town apart to look for a serving girl, so you may enjoy your short lived freedom. In the meantime I will return to Krawk Island and rip apart the old family mines in search for The Mermaid's Tear. "

Hushed whispers took the crowd of observers. " Once I have that there will be no need for you, and I will properly reunite you with your mother and grandfather in Hell! "

Bloodhook laughed, leaving the boardwalk and the two usul to their thoughts. Hannah was horribly confused by his words. Bloodhook could read her family's maps himself, so why did he need to wait until after he got the gem to track her down?

_My uncle could read the map of the Pirate Caves, but because he is not a direct descendant of my ancestors he could not proceed through the inner chambers. I later discovered that my family is incredibly skilled in magic, and used to teach the natives there defensive magic to protect themselves from pirates. They enchanted the inner chambers so those same pirates wouldn't profit from their hard work, so Bloodhook had to wait for me to break through the seal and get the Tear ..._

" And the rest is Neopian History; Bloodhook attacked me on my way out the caves, and I gave him when he had coming to him! " Hannah finished her story with emphasis, hitting her clenched fist against open palm.

Armin bobbed his head in agreement. " But that doesn't answer my question. "

Hannah looked back to him suddenly. " What question? "

" I asked you why you hate Garin and Jacques now. " He sighed. " You were pretty good friends with them as children. "

" Well ... " Hannah stood, heading to the door of the room. " People just ... grow up. " That story made her strangely hungry, so she thought she'd make the two of them a little snack.

Little did she know that it wouldn't be just the two of them much longer ...


	5. Peparations

The rating's lowered because there isn't anything _terribly_ bad in here yet. Just a few colorful words here and there. It'll probably be raised again later, depending on how the story unfolds. 

Thanks to all who've read and reviewed so far. Don't feel shy about asking questions or giving suggestions. 

**Process**: Chapters 1-8 written

* * *

**Session 05**: Preparations

* * *

_Knock. Knock. Knock._

" Armin, can you get the door? " Hannah asked from the stairs. It's been an incredibly long day, and she couldn't imagine anyone short of Jhudora showing up to torment her now. Tired, hot, and highly irritated by her last unwelcome visitor, Hannah needed to change into something more befitting a stressed usul.

Armin went to the door without a second thought. " Who is it? " He asked timidly before turning the doorknob--

SLAM! The second he cracked the door it was thrown open, sending the little bori on his shell from the force. On the other side was King Skarl who held a joint of ham in his greedy paws. Jeran, the knight from earlier, walked into their house closely behind his king. He's followed by a group of children that looked about Armin's age.

Rocking back and forth in his embarrassing position, Armin tried to take control of the situation. " Hey! What are you doing barging into Hannah's house? "

" I thought the people of this land were hospitable. " King Skarl commented aside, his gray eyes lazily looking around the place. " You should be ... " Bite. Snort. " Honored by my presence. "

" Being a king is no excuse for being rude! " He had to admit it's pretty hard to make a stand when you're three feet tall and stuck on your backside.

A yellow furred aisha stepped out from behind the knight, offering Armin a hand so she could pull him back onto his feet. Dressed in a strange schoolgirl's outfit, she seemed to be the only one who knew that the bori was in peril. " We're very sorry. " Once he regained his footing, she leaned in. " Our king is not very smart ... " She whispered with a smile, and he smiled in return.

Jeran heard the comment with his sensitive ears and grinned a little too. " His majesty decided since such a famous person lives on this island, we should at least pay her a visit. " The lupe's eyes hardened once more. " If this is a bad time ... "

" NONSENSE! " Skarl yelled, throwing his stripped ham bone in a random direction. The vampire Blumaroo that stood to one side of Jeran retrieved it, giving a hurried apology to Armin on Skarl's behalf as he did. " I am sure the staff here can make us a little snack, and squeeze us into her tight schedule. " He made it quite clear he would not take 'no' for an answer.

Armin's eyes grew wide. " Staff? There isn't any staff here! "

Skarl raised an eyebrow. " Oh? Then who does the cooking and cleaning here? "

" Hannah cooks. I clean. " The response came naturally. " It's what **normal** people who can't afford to pay a dozen people to do repetitive work do. "

" Is that right? " Skarl seemed mesmerized by the concept of doing one's own dirty work. " So I take it that you are the girl's husband? For a moment I thought you were her child -- "

Lisha noticed the deep blush on the pale bori's snout, but said nothing. " I'm not either! " He squealed, looking to the floor in embarrassment. " We're just good friends. "

The King chuckled before replying. " That's a weird set up you two have, though. I'd think that a girl as pretty as Hannah would've found someone to love a long time ago. "

Armin tensed slightly, but kept his calm. " Hannah doesn't have a boyfriend. " Oy, he didn't feel comfortable having this conversation with a near stranger.

Skarl placed a claw under his large chin as her pondered this. " That **is** interesting. " He grinned before looking towards Jeran. " Excuse us for a moment, young man, but we have some business to attend to before dinner. Lisha, Kayla, Borris, and Morris will remain here and help you with the preparations. "

Before Armin could protest to any of this, the two older pets were gone. Confused, he looked towards the four younger kids that were left at his disposal. Borris, the Blumaroo, had a disgusted look on his face since he just returned from properly disposing of the ham bone. His friend, Morris the Quiggle, seemed to be glaring at him from across the room.

And why? He felt a weight on his left hand that forced him to look down, and noticed that he and Lisha still had their hands intertwined. " Sorry! " He yelped, releasing her hand.

Kayla, the zafara alchemist, giggled. " There's no need to apologize. Morris is just a protective giddy. " Her voice had a thick accent that Armin couldn't quite place.

" DO **NOT**! " The quiggle screamed, turning his back to the group.

Heh. For a moment Armin thought this job was going to be boring. " We should get started. " Instead of pursuing just what Kayla meant by her comment, he changed the subject. " Just what does your king like to eat? "

The meridellian children giggled, and the group said it in union. " Everything! "

* * *

Hannah didn't hear any of the commotion downstairs. Her family's inheritance, the large mansion that she and Armin had all to themselves, had thick walls and vast rooms that made it near impossible to hear what was going on in the other parts of the house. For generations this was the biggest property on the island, that is until the public training school was established by Neopian Central. 

By time she had been born, the house had long since fell into shambles. Her grandfather told stories about how dozens of families took residence in this house at once. Every month they threw one of the most elaborate parties in Neopia, and it'd last nearly a week! To Hannah, a girl who had never been to a _real_ party (she couldn't call what they did at The Golden Dubloon a 'party'), those kind of stories were wonderful ...

Reaching her room at the end of the grand hallway, she noticed that the door had been cracked. _Don't tell me_ ... Hannah didn't need this now! Two intruders in her house in the same day? The door's flung open with a sharp kick, and on the bed was the last pet she wanted to see at a time like this ...

A yellow haired usul who appeared to be sleeping. He pulled the light pink silk sheets over his shoulders, partially covering his head like a child. His ears twitched to the sound of the door nearly flying off his hinges, but he didn't stir.

Anger didn't quite describe how she felt at that moment. He broke into her house, went to her room (out of hundreds of rooms, mind you), slept in her bed, and had his crew using her kitchen for their own desires! Anything else she needed to know about? Did he scrub the toilet with her toothbrush too?

Without thinking, she retrieved a coil of rope from the rack right beside the door. Holding it in both hands, that were now shaking like a Kadtonie at a Draik Egg convention, she decided that she couldn't be held accountable for what happened next ...

* * *

" You want me to **what**? " 

Jeran flew backwards, landing on top of a crate as the details of the King's horribly planned ideas boiled down into a sour mess. King Skarl was known for having some pretty stupid ideas, thus why an intelligent pet such as Jeran was appointed his advisor. Still, this was by far the most hair brained thing that he'd ever heard!

" I want you to gain her trust, Jeran. " Skarl repeated with confidence. " I had my doubts about this island when I first came here, but this turned out to be a very profitable place. I figured that just barging in and taking what we want would be us on bad terms with the natives, so we have to make this look like it's her own decision. "

" This is insane ... " Ears folding sharply, he'd look to the ground. " Why do you want her so badly? There has to be alternate sources of power that we can go after. " Jeran was fine with Skarl's quest for power back when they dealt with magical trinkets and charms, but this was a person! A living, breathing, person who had thoughts and feelings.

Sensing his discomfort, the king thought it right to remind him of just who was in charge of this operation. " I hope you're not thinking about disobeying me, Jeran. " His voice stern and serious. " You know what happens to those who oppose me. "

He heard rumors if that's what he meant. Before Jeran became an advisor to Skarl, there was another brave knight in his place. His strength and compassion for the people of Meridell is legendary, far surpassing his own. Valrigard's name is still uttered among the knights of Meridell, but no one knew why he was suddenly imprisoned.

Rumor has it that Valrigard refused to go into the Darigan kingdom to steal it's people's orb. Not only did he believe that the king was wrong for wanting such a powerful object, but Valrigard was actually _born_ in Darigan. Marked as a traitor and given a mockery of a trial, Valrigard is to spend the rest of his life in the dungeons of the castle.

Jeran couldn't imagine spending the rest of his life in those dank dungeons. He couldn't afford to, not between being a leader to his people and a big brother to Lisha. Too many people depend on him to throw it all away now. Could they understand him doing such a terrible thing in order to stay with them? Was what he planned to do even the right thing?

It seemed like an eternity for him to give his answer. " I'll do it. " He didn't sound happy in any case, feeling overwhelming hopelessness as he stood from his crate.

" But I can't say I'll enjoy it. "


	6. Fever Pitch

10,000 words and nearly two hundred hits (about 20 each chapter). The Ninja would like to think everyone who's read even if you didn't leave a review. It's stuff like this that encourages her to write more. 

After this chapter things will start to speed up. The Ninja will write a little every night, but the next chapter will be out probably Saturday morning. Midterms just snuck up on her like ... BAM. x.

* * *

**Session 06**: Fever Pitch

* * *

Angela is still upset over what happened at The Golden Dubloon this morning. Taking her break early, she decided to take out her frustration at the entrance of Smuggler's Cove, cleaning her laundry in the strong flowing stream that lead out into the ocean. Sleeves rolled around her armpits, she bent at the waist to scrub some dirt out of one of her favorite shirts.

" Damn that fat slob! " Rolling up her shirt, she'd slam it into her wicker basket filled with wet clothing. " I came to this island to get away from people like him, but jerks seem to follow me no matter where I go ... "

Sighing, she reached into her dry clothing basket and pulled out her favorite dress. She laid it in the water with care and started scrubbing, but soon noticed something odd.

Much more dirt than it appeared seeped into the water. All of it was a coppery color that reminded her of ... blood? No wait, it wasn't coming from her dress!

Standing erect with her long ears raised, the Aisha followed the trail of blood to the mouth of the cave where a pool had accumulated. Creeping backwards, the bar girl could guess that a terrible battle just took place deep within the pirate caves ...

Bump. Her foot brushed up against something that didn't quite feel like a rock in the water. Running over it with her bare paw, she shuddered at the thought of just _what _it might be.

Suddenly gloved a hand shot out of the bloody water, grabbing onto Angela's apron. The grip was firm enough to hold her, but the guy on the other end didn't seem strong enough to pull themselves out of the water. The aisha had a sinking feeling, like the hand was pulling her down into the water ...

And she **screamed**.

* * *

" Hannah! " 

That was all the blonde haired usul could get out before he found a rope fastened around his neck. After all those years fending for herself, the girl knew how to deliver some damage if she got aggravated.

Needless to say she's pretty aggravated by all of this.

In the few vital seconds it took for Garin to become aware, Hannah jumped onto the bed, pinning him down on his stomach. Sitting on his back, she managed to get the rope around his throat in a deadly nose that she tightened by yanking on the rope every few seconds.

Luckily, a concerned member of the household decided to check up on her after noticing she'd been gone for far too long. " Hannah, are you -- " Armin wasn't quite sure what he was seeing, but the usul on the bottom seemed to have difficulty breathing. " Wait! Stop! STOP! " He pleaded in the whimpering voice of a confused child.

Noticing that the older girl was a bit distracted with this newcomer, Garin tried a desperation move to save his life. Wiggling around under her, he managed to get his hands free long enough to attack the girl's sides with a hard, rapid, tickling. If there was one thing she remembered about the girl aside from her dependency on grog, it's that she's extremely ticklish.

His assault was enough to weaken her defense. " Hey! " She tried to hold back the dam of giggles, but her trembling lips gave her away. Hannah pulled back, but the boy didn't stop. " Stop ... it ... you ... son ... of ... a ... " She fell to the floor in a wave of endless giggles.

Garin didn't stop there. He jumped onto the floor beside her and continued, adding to Armin's confusion.

Looking between one usul and another, he finally managed to piece things together. " Garin? " Remembering the description from Hannah's stories about the boy. " What are you doing here? " He seemed to forget that just seconds ago Hannah was wringing the life out of him.

Hearing his name, the blonde usul looked up from his tickling. " And you are? "

" Armin the Small. " Giving his full title with airy pride. " I'm a friend of Hannah's. "

" A friend? " Moving his tickle attack down to Hannah's vulnerable stomach as he spoke. " I'm surprised Hannah has any friends after the way she treated my crew. " Much to Armin's surprise Garin didn't seem either angry or disappointed by it. In fact, he seemed to take it as a joke!

Hannah finally mustered enough strength between breaths to push Garin away from her. " What the hell are you doing here? " She panted, repeating Armin's question with a very angry tone.

Falling on his rear, he'd rub his lower back before looking pitifully towards the female. " Far be it from me to say hello to an old friend. " He noticed the glare she gave. " You might not want me as your friend, but I still care about you! " See? He could get just as snappy if he tried.

Taken back by his words, Hannah didn't come up with a response. He's a ruthless pirate! He shouldn't be caring about anyone but himself!

Armin took it upon himself to tell them both about their current situation. " Those people at the door were from Meridell. " He turned to face Hannah. " They want to come over for dinner. "

Bombshell. " You can't be serious ... " The brown haired usul cupped her face into her paws. " By Fyora, you can't be serious ... " How long did they have? Only about an hour or so to make a dinner fit for a king?

" I can have my crew come in and help -- "

" No! " Hannah snapped, rising to her feet. " You need to get out of here, now! "

Garin seemed confused. " Why? I only want to help. "

" Because ... " Her voice sounded as if she became a mother speaking to a child. " You're a pirate, and they're from Meridell. If you don't know the Trinity Kingdoms (Meridell, Brightvale, and Darigan) have jurisdiction to arrest any and all criminals they come across. "

Taking a moment to let this new information sink in, he'd nod in understanding. " But I don't know where my crew is. I can't leave without them! "

Arrgh! Where's Punchbag Bob when you need to take out some frustration? " Just get out of here! If there's anyone still in the house I'll point them in your direction, but you have to leave. " She begged, growing weary of this whole situation.

" I'll go. " Garin agreed, walking with Hannah to the door. " But I do want to talk to you later. "

Hannah put her hand on the doorknob. " About what? "

" Don't act dumb around the kid. " He looked back to Armin as she opened the door.

Hannah looked down the hallway and noticed someone approaching. " Shit! Armin, stall them! " Pushing the bori into the line of fire, she slammed the door shut again.

" Who was that? " Garin asked in confusion while Hannah pushed him away from the door.

" Jeran! " Armin cried sheepishly, trying his best to remain calm amongst the chaos. " Hannah will be down in a few minutes, so we should wait downstairs. " He didn't falter in his explanation, but didn't down and out lie to him either.

Acknowledging the bori with a nod, he'd cast a glance at the closed door. " I heard some screaming. Is she all right? " He asked, concerned.

" Yes! " His response was forced. " She said a Miamouse and freaked, but we managed to nail that little bugger one good! " A dry laugh ensured.

" A Miamouse, you say? " Jeran used a telltale tone, leaning against the wall opposite of Hannah's bedroom door. " Did you know that Miamouse aren't native to Krawk Island, Armin? They're a pretty uncommon species even as petpets, so perhaps you killed someone's pet? "

Armin's face fell, realizing that he stupidly tripped on his own lies. " That would be terrible then, right? " He backed against the door, at a total loss of words.

" I would say so. " Jeran pushed off the wall towards the door. " In any case, I have to return the corpse to it's owner if you don't mind ... "

* * *

" I can't jump! " 

On the other side of the door Hannah and Garin were having technical difficulties of their own. Both standing on the railing of the balcony overlooking the gardens around Hannah's house, they realized that a jump from here would be quite fatal.

Hannah thought of the alternatives. They could try rushing past Jeran, but didn't know how strong the knight was. Besides, all she needed was a rumor about how she started harboring criminals to get around the territory. She could only hope that Armin could get them enough time to build an escape plan ...

That's it!

" My rope! " Bare paws searched her body for her escape rope, but she couldn't find it. " Did you see my rope, Garin? "

" Not since you put it around my neck. " He replied sarcastically, putting his hands around his bruised throat for epiphysis.

Hannah's eyes searched the room in hopes that it lay somewhere nearby, but noticed that the was opening. Hesitation was her downfall. If only she could've just hidden him in the closet!

Garin took on the offensive, reaching into his vest for his blade. Unfortunately, he forgot that he stood on very narrow ground, and lost his balance. Panicking, he grabbed the closest thing he could get his free paw on in hopes of saving himself.

That just so happened to be Hannah's dress. The events happened to quickly that Hannah couldn't even muster a scream before gravity yanked her off the balcony.

Five stories lay between them and certain death ...

Hannah didn't notice that her mark started glowing ...


	7. Breaking Point

Here it is. It might be about twelve hours late for 'Saturday morning', but it underwent some last second revisions. 

Last chapter someone asked to be a Beta Reader. Now The Ninja has **no** idea how that's supposed to work since the story is still being written out. The best The Ninja can do is give them an outline of the entire thing since there aren't any physical chapters. For the moment The Ninja would have to decline for Beta Readers, but might have a few later on after she wrote out an outline for the story. 

At this point there's well over 200 reads. The Ninja would like to thank all of you with an extra long chapter. The next chapter will be posted sometime Monday.

* * *

**Session 07**: Breaking Point

* * *

The mark of Ta-Kutep took on a light blue color that quickly ripped a hole through Hannah's long sleeved shirt. Pain shot up the poor usul's arm, as if falling to her death wasn't enough.

But at that moment quite the remarkable thing happened. Seconds before hitting the ground a burst of wind shot up from the ground, pushing against the falling usul to slow their descent. Hannah felt a strange, almost magical, wind pushing her body up from the ground that felt almost soothing.

Moments after the comforting sensation began, it was over. The wind stopped, and the two were dropped from a harmless height of four feet into the bushes. Stunned, Hannah instinctively checked to see if Garin made the journey to the ground safely. Beside her the pirate lay unconscious, but alive.

" Oh my ... BORRIS! MORRIS! "

Jeran! Looking towards the balcony in horror, she realized that the knight must have seen that strange display of power too. If he did, then he most certainly saw Garin.

Not good. Not good at all.

" Ms. Hannah took a pretty bad fall. Go down below and search for her. "

She had to admit he knew how to keep his cool under pressure, but how would she hold up? Her arm ached to the point that she wanted to cut it off, and her body didn't take the impact of the ground too well. Against it all she had to get Garin away from the house, and running across the backyard into the streets of the town wasn't an option. They'd never make it!

From above, the two young knights jumped from the balcony to the ground floor unharmed. Borris is a Blumaroo, and their rubbery tails protected him from the impact. Morris had much of the same protection, except in his legs being a Quiggle.

Borris was the first to the bushes where Hannah fell. Lowering into a kneel, he pushed the shrubbery aside with his paws. " ... They're gone! " He cried in disbelief.

" That's not possible! " Morris rushed over to the bushes and searched himself, finding that they were indeed gone. He found a little more though. " Jeran, I found something! " Passage in the ground that lead to places unknown. There was no latch on the outside, and it looked pretty well fitted into the ground.

Jeran could see the secret passage's door from the balcony, but knew that he couldn't open it in the conventional matter. His sword couldn't fit in the cracks beside it, and blowing up the thing would draw too much attention from the citizens. " Just great ... "

" JERAN! " He winced as his King bellowed his name. " What on Neopia happened? "

" Ms. Hannah escaped. " Jeran replied softly, turning to face the Skeith. " And she took another boy with her. I didn't get a good look at him, but he looked to be a pirate. "

Armin listened to their conversation with impending dread. " I was afraid of this. She must have figured out what we were getting at, and decided to jump ship. " Skarl looked to the Bori who tried his best to hide. " Do you know anything about this, boy? " Armin, too scared to answer, just stared. " GAH! If he doesn't want to talk, we'll deal with him later ... "

Jeran took in a sharp breath. " Sir? "

" Feed him and get the knights to take him. I'll question him once we get back. "

Take him where? Armin stepped away from Jeran and drew his slingshot. " What are you talking about? " He demanded, drawing a shot on the King. " I'm not going anywhere! "

The King pulled out his Golden hammer, ready to defend his decision. " I have the right to arrest anyone who is seen as a threat to Neopia! If you're not willing to tell us where that wench ran off to we'll just have to hold you in contempt! " He glared at Jeran. " Arrest him! "

Jeran hesitated to the thought of arresting a child, so Armin saw it at his chance to escape. His slingshot loaded quickly, he shot an exploding Snowball at the ground by Jeran's feet. Living up to it's name the snowball exploded into a flurry of light and snow on impact, enough of a distraction for Armin to slip through the bars of the balcony.

_If Hannah could make it ..._

He thought he could too! Armin jumped from the balcony, curling into his people's 'defensive bori position' that allowed him to take the bulk of the impact with his hard shell. It still hurt, but luckily the bushes below him broke his fall.

The bori uncurled from his fetal position to meet the blade of a rather displeased Quiggle. Shoot! He forgot about those blasted kids! " H-Hi. " He stuttered, crawling back towards the outer wall of the house.

Outnumbered, Armin slowly dropped his weapon to raise his hands. There was nothing else he could do on his end, so he hoped that his friend was doing okay.

* * *

" Got it! " 

The room of Moonfade's leader was in shambles, but the mynci could care less. Once given a task he'd make sure that it was done, no matter how much destruction lie in his wake.

Besides, he didn't think that it's leader would be coming back anytime soon.

Kanrik, subconsciously worried about _dying _or being _punished_, had a few books with specific instructions on what to do if he died, went into a coma, had a terminal illness ... Heck, he had one about 'a specific food ingredient that'd cause me a world of discomfort if it were to be found in my dinner'. No living soul knew just how much the new guild leader had stored away, but imagined that in any case all of this would be overkill.

The book he specified was bound different from the other black books in soft leather hide. Plain and lacking a title, he wondered just what was so important in this book anyway. His beady little eyes scanned the room and door for any intruders passively before opening the cover to--

The mynci's ears rose sharply to the sound of a sharp click behind him. " Drop it. " Hissed a snappy female voice from behind him. Standing in the frame of the door was Masila brandishing her new favorite toy; a blaster.

" Mean lady ani't gonna be getting this book! " Valin shot a dirty look at Masila. " What'd you want with it anyway? "

Masila seemed disinterested in what he had to say for himself. " That's none of your business. " Taking a few dangerous steps forward, it was clear that she wasn't backing down. " Your primitive brain couldn't understand it all, anyway. "

Valin wouldn't get a chance to respond. The barrel of the small gun that Masila held rocketed forward, shooting a fiery hot beam of light at the place where Valin once stood. A miss! Growling, the acara searched the room for any sign of the mynci.

" Hey there, stupid! " Came taunting from above. " For someone who says she's so smart, you sure are dumb! "

Looking up, she could see Valin hanging from the chandler like his ape-like ancestors. Tucked under his arm was the book that she wanted so much, and she thought if she shot from here ... " You ignorant little beast! Do you know who you're dealing with? "

Her rage got the better of her, and she reacted without thinking. Raising her pistol again she fired in hopes of shooting the monkey down. Valin expected as much and reacted quickly, scrambling up the side of the chandler and using his weight to tilt the bottom towards the shot. It ricocheted back at Masila, who could only duck to keep any of her vitals.

Unfortunately, she couldn't get her ears out of the line of fire.

Her cries of pain filled the air just as Valin made his escape; jumping onto a high bookshelf and disappearing into a vent just out of the feline's reach. Masila stumbled to her knees, clutching her bleeding right tentacle like a child. Just as she feared it ripped the tendril in half, and what was left would have to be stitched up immediately.

" Lady Masila! " A bloodied Shoyru ran into the bedroom, wearing the signature red cape of Masila's followers. Luckily, the blood he sported wasn't his own. " We should return to base ... Your ear looks terrible! "

" Don't tell me what to do! " She glared at the dragon, causing him to shrink back towards the door. " Are we done here? "

" Yes ma'am! " The Shoyru snapped, fearing for his safety. " We searched the entire area, but it seems that most of the Moonfade thieves aren't living here anymore. Those who were left behind are now in our custody, but they're not talking. "

Masila stood now, and crossed the room to stand in front of the Shoyru. He looked to be half of Masila's age and frightened. His fears were confirmed when she grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, slamming him against the wall.

" Make them talk. " Her command was also a threat for his well being. " And get some foot soldiers ready to accompany me to Krawk Island. " Masila's voice softened. " I suppose I'd need about twenty ... "

" Krawk Island, ma'am? " The Shoyru winced.

" The operation will go on as planned, solider. " Masila forged a calm tone. " I will not rest until we crush Moonfade and take what is rightfully ours. " The pain overtook her, and she threw the thief to her right side while holding her forehead with her free hand. " But we'll need to regroup in the meantime. Secure this area and move our thieves into the inner chambers. We'll be leaving at midnight. "

Relieved, the Shoyru bowed graciously to his leader. " Yes, m'lady. " Then hurried out of the room to tell the others.

Masila stared at the door for a moment to insure that the low ranking thief was one, then placed her hand on the door to close it. Removing the hand that cradled her ear, she'd look down at her now blood soaked glove with a frown. _This is a taste of the pain he felt_ ... Her eyes glossed over with tears that didn't fall. Fresh memories of the incident that took place hours before still in her mind, she sat on the edge of _his _bed.

_I remember ... when I was welcome in here. _

Instinctively her eyes fell on the dresser beside the bed. Reaching over with her clean hand, she yanked out the first drawer in search for something. Being in this room brought back memories of happier times, and she could only hope that he didn't forget them, either.

* * *

_I had to admit that I was a bit of a harlot. How old was I back then, in my twenties? I shouldn't have been mixing myself up with a boy his age, but I found something about him that wasn't in any other thief in the guild. Kanrik wasn't born into our profession like Galem and I. _

_In fact, Galem was the one who brought the sniveling little boy home on one of our nightly raids. He wouldn't tell us where he came from besides the fact that it was 'more beautiful than any other town he's seen before ...', and then he'd look at us sorrowfully. __I wanted to return the boy to his homeland, wherever it was, because he gave the thieves a very uneasy feeling. The aura he gave off was unpleasant for some odd reason. Galem and the leader before him wanted to exploit his powers of 'intimidation' to make him a fighter, though, and their word overrode my own._

_I did not approve of their methods of 'unleashing that power'. _

_I didn't like it at all ... _

_But I, and he, had to endure ... bide our time ... until that glorious day ... _

Masila followed the sound of sobbing down the halls of the Thieves Guild, arriving in the dormitories of the newly recruited members. Training for the new recruits was hard, but it was rare that one of them actually started crying. Thieves were naturally hardy, even the females, and learned from an early age that crying would get them nowhere.

Since Masila was a high ranking member of the guild even back then, she didn't need to knock to ask permission to go into a lower ranking member's room. She just pushed the door open and looked for herself. Sitting in the corner was a small blue gelert who couldn't be any older than thirteen failing at dressing his own wounds. Masila didn't have to take a closer look to know that those injuries were not from basic training ...

He'd been beaten.

" Hey there ... " Her heart went out to him immediately. " Are you going to be okay, little one? " She said, kneeling beside him with almost motherly concern.

" I just got careless ... " The gelert shot back, trying to hide his face. " I should be more careful next time ... " He tried to sound strong, but it was obvious he'd been crying recently.

Masila reached out for his paws as he tried to cover his face, catching his wrists in her gloved hands to lower to his lap. The gelert boy looked up at her, his yellow eyes giving off an eerie glow in the darkness. It was unnatural. His right eye was starting to swell from the beating he took, but besides that his face looked fine. He didn't even have the terrible scar at this point!

" You poor thing ... " The twenty-something said pitifully. " I'll have to put something on your eye, or it'll swell shut. " She lead him to stand, which he did with great difficulty. Not only was he weighed down by his limping, but by the heavy armor that every thief was supposed to learn to move in. " Go sit. I'll be back shortly. "

Masila left to get some provisions from her room, and by time she got back the gelert was quietly sitting on the edge of his bed. He looked at her in silent greeting when she came to the door, then returned to looking at his dirty hands.

" Do you have a name? " She asked off hand as she dipped her rag into a bowl of water. Receiving no response frustrated her, but she didn't give up yet. " My name's -- "

" Masila ... " The gelert piped in, his eyes still on the floor. " You're General Galem's girlfriend. "

Though taken back by the boy's description of her, she nodded. " Yes, that's right. " She said hurriedly as she placed a temporary patch over the swollen eye. Masila couldn't stay to long, so trusted the gelert not to remove the ice pack or patch until she got back. " Does it hurt anywhere else? "

" No ma'am. " He said hurriedly, his head tilting slightly from the weight of the ice pack. " Thank you, ma'am. "

Smiling, Masila leaned over to give the boy a kiss on the forehead. " You're welcome. " And with that she stood to leave.

" Ma'am? "

Stopping in mid step as the boy called her again, she'd look over her shoulder with a confused expression. The boy, much to her surprise, smiled just enough for her to see the difference she had made.

" Kanrik. " Feeling a bit of heat touch his snout, he'd look away briefly. " My name -- is Kanrik. " He stuttered on the words, embarrassed.

_My visits did not stop there. I graced his doorstep every time I heard that they were trying to 'break him in', either to clean his wounds of comfort him. For the first few visits he was incredibly shy, but over time he opened up to me ... and only me. At first he only told me about his day (and how terrible it was), then he started telling me about his homeland ... _

_I listened to his stories about how he grew up with his mother, and how she played an important role in this land's society. The way things were handled there was like something out of a dream. There was order, but no fear. There was wealth, but no one was necessarily poor. There lay scholars and doctors, but rarely one that you'd call ignorant. Among it all faeries, those closest to the gods themselves, lived among the normal folk. These faeries were not worshiped as they were here, but ordinary creatures who lived ordinary lives ... _

_Galem said he was full of it ... _

_I am not sure ... _

Digging through the drawers, she found something quite promising. Pulling it out, she could see among other things the patch that she gave him on that night over fifteen years ago. _He kept it_ ... her heart soared, and she brought it close to her lips so she could savor that lovely scent. Her heightened emotions did not last long, though, as realization came back to her.

_I killed him ..._

She murdered a man that she swore that she could never hurt!

This time, she couldn't stop the tears from falling.


	8. History of Ta Kutep

Happy Valentines Day everyone. This chapter would've been posted earlier, but there was a big power outage in the area due to a storm. Oh well. The Ninja drew something for Valentine's Day she tries to submit into the Art Gallery Spotlight, but it didn't get in. You can get to it here:

d e v i a n t a r t . c o m / d e v i a t i o n / 2 8 9 6 1 4 8 2 /

This chapter was halfway finished when The Ninja submitted the last. After going over it the first time The Ninja decided to extend the part with Armin in it. Originally, we were finally going to get into just what happened to Kanrik at the beginning of the story but ya'll are going to have to wait a little longer.

Confused? Things are going to start falling together very soon.

* * *

**Session 08**: History of Ta-Kutep

* * *

Almost there ... 

Hannah stopped briefly to lean against a wall, shifting the living weight she carried from one shoulder to the other. Things would go a lot smoother if Garin just woke up and carried his own weight, but that'd be asking too much. Today was just going _smashing _as it was, anyway. A small part of her worried that Garin might have been seriously injured in the fall. After all, she didn't know what a concussion was until a Snowbeast introduced himself to her with his fist.

Smuggler's Cove was, technically, the entire system of caves in the pirate territory. No one pet knew every tunnel in the cove, but Hannah's family had the most general knowledge of everything that went on below. Hannah only shared that knowledge with a select few; Armin, Garin, Angela, Jacques, but even then she was selected. She taught each of them a separate sector of the caves and just enough to get back and forth between islands.

Just up ahead was the door she searched for; a rope suspended from the ceiling that lead into The Golden Dubloon. Placing Garin on a rock above water level, she jumped for the rope to pull the panel down.

" Arrgh ... " No, that wasn't a joke. The pirate was experiencing quire the rush of pain as he came back into consciousness. Spotting Hannah out the corner of his eye, he asked the obvious question. " Where are we? "

Ignoring him long enough to pull the panel down, the wood slid forward to form makeshift stairs that they could climb up. " This is your fault. " She started, pulling herself up onto the first step. " You shouldn't have tried to fight him. "

Garin took on the defensive. " What was I supposed to do? Let him catch me **and **you? "

" You shouldn't be worried over me. " Hannah glared down at him, trying to stand on the shaking stairs. " You didn't give a damn about me when you left me! "

" I planned on coming back! " _But by time I did_ ... Sliding off the rock, he started for the stairs behind her. " Life out there is tough, and I didn't want you to suffer. If I left early and made a little money, then I could support you -- "

Hannah looked away. " Liar ... "

But he didn't stop. " I wanted to propose! " She reached up to knock on the door above the stairs. " I loved you then, and I still love you! That's why I had to come back! "

Did that get through to her? For a moment she stopped moving forward and hung though, her hand trembling. Then, without addressing him, she reached forward to knock on the panel. Her knocking seemed to be some kind of code ...

* * *

Above them, Angela walked pass the room leading 'downstairs' with an arm full of dirty clothes. " Huh? " The aisha looked up and down the hallway to make sure no one was coming, then placed her hand on the wall. She pushed a wooden panel into the wall that acted as a handle to open up that section of the wall, leading into the hidden room. Closing the door behind her, she'd walk overtop of the wooden panel at the center of the room and tap back with her foot. 

_Tap. Tap. Tap ... Tap?_

A pause.

_Bang! Bang. Bang. Bang ... Bang. Bang. BANG! _

_Tap? Tap. Ta-_

" ANGELA! "

The purple haired aisha jumped. " Hannah! " Scrapping the sides of the panel, she lifted it so the exhausted usul could climb onto dry land. " I'm so sorry. My encoding is bad ... "

" Really ... " Hannah said sarcastically, panting. " Good thing I wasn't in a hurry, or I might've died. " She looked to her friend and noticed that she looked very concerned, and her dress was covered in blood. " You okay, Angie? "

Angela reached for her throat, feeling a lump gather in it even before she spoke. " It's okay. " Looking down at her bloodied dress, she'd add. " It's not my blood. I found a guy in the water by Smuggler's Cove. He's ... he's hurt pretty bad. "

" Did you bring him here? " Hannah seemed to disapprove of the thought. " You shouldn't have touched him. You don't want to get mixed up in any of that _pirate_ business. " For a moment she forgot that a pirate was within listening range.

" But ... He's no pirate. " Kneeling beside her friend, she'd look at her with a grim look. " I ... I think you should see. I wanted to make sure you saw. "

Garin climbed out of the hole just as the two women were about the leave. " Hey! " He cried, and the two looked back.

" Who's that? " Angela asked.

Hannah didn't look at Garin, not after what he said back in the tunnel. " His name's Garin. He's a pirate from Scurvy's territory. " That was a flat out lie, but Garin didn't hold it against her. He could explain himself later. " Those guys from Meridell might come looking for him, so I think he should just stay in here. "

" I'm not going to hide from them! " Garin protested, rising to his feet. " Pirates don't hide like scolded gelert at the first sign of trouble. " He declared as he searched for his dagger.

Angela looked between them confused, but didn't say anything. " Do what you want. " Hannah turned towards the door. " You do that no matter what I say, anyway. " Hannah didn't need Angela's help in locating the injured pet. Any pet could pick up and track the scent of fresh blood.

Garin stared after her, but the other barmaid got in his way. " Hold on, there. " She gave him a stern look. " You should let her be alone for a while. I'd imagine she won't want to talk for a while anyway. " Once the usul related, she continued. " I've never seen Hannah so upset. What happened? "

Taking a step back Garin shoved his hands into his pockets. " I proposed ... " He muttered, his ear twitching in agitation.

* * *

Armin couldn't enjoy his dinner. He ate slowly not because he hoped to make another escape attempt, but because he worried over how Hannah and Garin were doing down below. Long ago he committed his life to making sure that she remain safe, and only half of the reason was because he'd taken a liking to her personality. The other half ... was nearly too painful to try and remember. His duty and position in his tribe made him responsible for whatever happened to Hannah from here, and to the rest of Neopia. 

" Mr. Armin? " A timid voice called from the door. Looking up, Armin saw the yellow aisha with the strange clothing from before. " May I have a word with you, Mr. Armin? "

Did Skarl send her here to get information out of him? Either way he had no control over her coming or going in his current position; sitting on a bench in a cell below the deck of Meridell's Flagship. " I can't make you leave. " He didn't look at her, though. " What do you want? "

Taking her cue, the aisha walked to his cell with a book in her paws. " You are not a Bori born in this time, correct? "

The sound of the aisha turning the thin pages tickled his ears. " That book ... " He couldn't explain it, but it became like a sixth sense.

" This one? " The aisha walked around so he could see the cover. " It is _Her Revelations_. Did you see this book before- "

" Every Bori knows of Revelations! " Armin interrupted, turning to face her. " Where on Neopia did you even get that? The only copy I've ever seen was the one in the Ice Caves, and even that one's not complete like this ... "

Nodding, the aisha thought it safe to let him see the faded yellow pages. " King Hagan had a copy of this book in his libraries. He told me that his niece brought it back with her after a journey. " She explained quickly, but felt the need to drop the subject for the King's sake. " If you weren't born in this time, then you lived near the time that this book was written. I wondered what it was like back then, and if the events in this book are true ... "

" I can assure you that it is. " Reaching for the book, Armin took it into his paws and started flipping through the pages. " Life during The Downfall was terrible. I am so glad that times like those are over, for the moment. "

Lisha's eyes lit up. " For the moment? "

" Aye. " He said pitifully as he found the page he searched for. " You know what they say; Neopians are bound to repeat sins of the past. No one wants to let the old legends just die, for their own sake. " Turning the book slowly so it faced the girl, he'd finish. " It seems like the rulers of this world will always be struggling for absolute power. "

Adjusting her glasses, Lisha looked down at the book with great interest. " That is the symbol burned on the girl's arm, yes? " Did she need any confirmation? The symbol of the sun with the watchful eye in the center was unmistakable even without reading the surrounding text.

" The mark of Ta-Kutep, simply put, means 'The Seal' in the language of old Neopia. Ta-Kutep was widely feared because it is reserved for the most terrifying of crimes and creatures in the old world. Ta-Kutep not only suppressed the powers of those condemned by it, but completely removed it from their being. It can only be called upon and used by the most powerful of Faeries, but even then they are reluctant to use it because the power sealed by Ta-Kutep is never fully destroyed. If a living pet or faerie were to wander too close to the resting place of the seal, then the power would seep into their bodies. "

Lisha flipped the page. " It is true that those who are 'marked' by Ta-Kutep earn the powers of the condemned, but the change in their bodies could be so drastic that the cursed would die in a manner of days. Ta-Kutep has had only about a dozen documented uses, but there's only been one documented case where those who were 'marked' survived. " Reaching the end, she'd look up at Armin. " Why are you telling me this? "

" Because I think you're the only one in your party with a good head on their shoulders! " Armin cried, snapping the book shut. " Maybe you can convince your King that it's best not to explore the extent of Hannah's powers. "

" I understand, but ... " Lisha reached for the book. " Do you at least know what manner of beast might have been sealed in that mark? King Skarl would at least want to know that much. "

" Maybe ... " Armin stood quiet for a moment. " But I'd need to see her try to use her powers again. I didn't want to stress it because she's still pretty weak, but now we won't have much of a choice, huh? "

Stepping back, the aisha brought the large book close to her chest. " I ... will try to talk to them, Mr. Armin. " Soon he was alone in the brig.

Turning to leave, Armin felt as though he accomplished at least a little on his end. Lisha offered some interesting questions that got him thinking as well. For the moment all he could do was make his own notes and hope he could find the answers first. They took his slingshot and daggers, but left him with his notepad and a pencil since it was pretty harmless. He sat down in his cell and wrote the possibilities: locations of the final resting places of each Ta-Kutep mark, and if it had already been disturbed or not.

Halfway through his list, he stopped. " The Lost Desert ... " Biting his lip, he'd try to remember just why a mark was there ...

When there wasn't one before ...


	9. Hold My Hand

This is the chapter The Ninja thought she put out on Valentine's Day, but she didn't. Just goes to show you that people should get a good full eight hours of sleep at night. Snooore

Here's a 'what if' question for you. Aside from the fact that wars would be violent and one sided to the group that had them, why aren't guns featured in any of the plots? It seems like all anyone knows are swords. That's pretty strange since there's guns in real Neopia. Ah well. We touch a little on the subject in this chapter. 

Let's see if anyone knows who Angela **really** is now! Yeah, all the characters so far are based on 'real' Neopets characters.

* * *

**Session 09**: Hold My Hand

* * *

Hannah didn't know what to expect when she found the source of the smell, but she had to check to make sure anyway. Along with the scent of blood she picked up what species the poor guy might have been. Once she got a lock on it, she immediately got a terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach. It felt as though there were thousands of little Feepits scurrying around inside her, their fur tickling her insides. 

" H-hello? " 

A groan was her only response. Swallowing her fears, Hannah headed for the place where Angela laid him.. There were no beds in The Golden Dubloon due to the owner's rules about everyone clearing out at the end of the night, so she made him a makeshift one out of some tablecloth and a bag of flour. 

" ... Han-nah ... " 

The voice! From that moment Hannah could feel every motion of her heart, and a rush of heat that made it hard to stand. Despite her best attempts to stand, she fell to her knees beside the cot immediately to look for herself. " Kanrik ... " Disbelief played true in her voice as she reached for the gelert's face. " Why ... are you here? " 

He tried to get away from her hand, but he just didn't have the strength. Taking his snout and chin into her hands, she pull his head onto her lap out of instinct. The cloth fell, and she could see near the full extent of the damage. Blood accumulated at two spots on his upper torso; the lower stomach and a few inches higher at the base of the chest. The fabric looked to be burned away adjacent to where the puncture wounds were. Such wounds she had never seen before in her time treating them, so she had no idea where to begin. 

Could he speak? He tuned out to the world around him early this morning, letting adrenaline take him wherever it would lead. That's long since expired, and now he struggled to even stay conscious. " Are ... you ... all right? " Did he think it or say it? He gave up on himself long ago. Kanrik only lived for the sake of fulfilling his duty to her. 

" I'm fine! " Hannah was more interested in trying to help him. Honestly, she was frightened out of her wits that anyone could hurt him this badly. Back in the Ice Caves he cleared the way flawlessly, so she had to question just what happened between then and now. " But you're tore of pretty bad ... " 

" I ... know. " The thief examined himself the best he could. He's quite thankful that he lost feeling in most of his body, and yet he wanted to feel. He couldn't feel that his head was on her lap, or that she held him by one of his long ears. " Don't worry ... about me. " By Fyora he felt guilty! He should have told her back at the Ice Caves, but he had to put his pride and own ambitions first. " Worry about yourself. " 

" Don't talk like that! " It was not the words that he used, but the way he spoke them. It was like he had lost all hope for himself. " You're a strong person. Just hold on and I'll get something to make you feel better ... " 

Hannah tried to stand, but Kanrik grabbed her by the wrist. " Please ... stay here a little longer. " He begged her, turning his head so he could look up at her. " I need ... to ask you something. " 

Reluctantly Hannah settled down on her knees. " Yes, what is it? " She tried to calm her nerves, and convince herself that the worst was not happening. 

Hannah had to hold onto his hand and ask for his support. Luckily, he was able to squeeze back.

* * *

" I don't know what the hell's wrong with her. " 

It didn't take long for Garin to return to his normal cocky self, but his crew knew better than to think he was over it. Oh no. Garin **never** got over anything as easily as this. Eventually Angela managed to get him out of the hidden passage and into the tavern where several members of his crew were already waiting. Jacques was not there, and he questioned only for a moment where his best friend could have gone off to before falling into that old tired conundrum. 

Settling into a corner booth with friends to all sides of him, Garin started to his second pastime: drinking away his feelings. " I pour my heart out to the girl and she shrugs me off like I'm nothing, I swear ... " He paused to take in his drink. " It's times like this that I don't even want to bother with women! " He noticed a few guys around the table giving him odd looks, and chuckled. " I love 'em to death, but I can't read them for the life of me. " Then, they grinned. 

Angela smiled nervously as the crew continued this conversation, but her thoughts were with Hannah and the stranger in the back. She considered going back to check on them, but she was still technically on the clock and couldn't afford to. That was until a red kyrii stumbled through the doors, looking exhausted. 

Garin looked to the door. " Jacques! " He stood up without thinking, his knees bumping the table to topple it over. " Heh. " He looked towards Angela, who looked horrified for more than one reason. " Sorry miss. " 

Jacques stepped over the broken plates and dishes so he could meet the crew. " Did I come too late? " One of the lower crewmen shook their head. " Good. I'm really sorry, but I heard some rumors about a big battle happening under Smuggler's Cove last night. I went to look for myself and found some interesting stuff ... " He trailed so he could dig into his pockets. 

" I have to admire how you focus on important manners even during times of crisis, Jacques. " Garin commented. When thoughts of that brown haired usul plagued his mind he forgot about the menacing creature that he was supposed to be. 

" I doubt that I can make you part with your Maractrice dagger, but these might be to your liking. " Jacques said as he pulled a long blade from his pouch; a blade made of a near transparent metal with gold trim flowing elegantly down to the handle. 

" That is ... the blade of the Moonfade guild leader! " The other members of the crew were as equally astonished. The blade was a trademark; no other pet in the world had one. " You found them in the caves? 

Jacques nodded. " I found three. " He took the other two out of the pouch, handing each in turn to Garin. " The first I found on the upper levels by the entrance of the cove. Two were on the banks of the river flowing through the lower levels. " 

" You don't suppose ... " Was it possible that the guild leader had been killed? " Have you heard anything about the fate of Moonfade while you were out there? " 

" No ... " Jacques shook his head, frowning. " If anything happened, it's too soon to know for sure. " Jacques knew what this was really about, but wouldn't dare bring it up in front of the other crew members. What and who he and Garin talked about in their downtime was none of their business, so he changed the subject. " I also found a strange device ... " He reached into his pouch again, and when he pulled this object out Angela squeaked. 

It was a blaster with a narrow barrel where the blast came out. Angela recognized it immediately, but the pirates seemed perplexed. " Hold on! " Panic struck her as Jacques started to hand the foreign object off to Garin. " Don't touch it! STOP! " She screamed. 

Garin was highly confused at the aisha's strange behavior. " What's your problem? " 

Angela rushed forward, but did not take immediate action. " Give it to me ... " Her tone was dead serious, but Jacques didn't comply. " I'm serious! You're going to kill someone with that gun! " 

Jacques eyes widened. " That _what_? " 

The aisha looked down at the blaster. " This ... is a gun. It's a terrible weapon that should've never seen the light of day. " Just seeing one of these perfected weapons brought tears to her eyes. " Back in the back ... there lay someone dying because he was struck down by one of these. Medicine on Neopia isn't advance enough to treat wounds caused by these yet. Those who are injured by these just may very well die, so please. " Angela looked to Jacques. " I'm the only one who can safely dismantle it. I need to destroy it before somebody else gets hurt. " 

Jacques seemed to understand, but Garin was hesitant. " How do _you_ know so much about this 'gun'? " He questioned, glaring at her. 

" I made some terrible mistakes in the past. " She replied swiftly, feeling like she's being persecuted. " I want to make amends, if that's possible. " 

" You don't have to give it to her, Jacques. " Garin said as he turned to face his friend. " You found it, so you should follow suit with the rules 'Finders Keepers'. Who knows? You might be better with that than with a sword! " 

" I'm not sure. " Jacques looked at the gun with a frown. " I never actually ... you know ... before. " He had serious doubt in his voice. 

Angela couldn't believe what she was hearing. Chances were slim that she'd get the blaster now that Garin stepped in, so she slunk away from the group. " You're right. " She said to Garin, bowing out of formality. " I shouldn't tell you what to do with your spoils. Now if you excuse me ... " 

Without another word Angela slipped into the back, trying to suppress her memories about the origins of that weapon. Once she stepped through the back she heard sobbing coming down the hallway. The source was the room where she left the wounded gelert. Against her better judgement she walked down the hallway to check on her friend, peeking through the crack of the door. 

Hannah was crying, her back facing the door as she sobbed into her hands. One of them still held Kanrik's hand ... and he wasn't squeezing back. 


	10. The Afterlife

The Ninja has to apologize. She spent about a week writing and rewriting this chapter and she just couldn't make it work. / As a result it still sucks, AND it's late. There are also no chapters on backup because of the rewrite, so she's going to have to pull an all nighter or two. Hopefully there will be a chapter Monday ... hopefully. 

On another note, some people think Garin stands a chance of winning Hannah back. Snicker Yeah. We'll have to see if he's man enough for the job in the next chapter.

* * *

**Session 10**: The Afterlife

* * *

Pain no longer had a place here, and his lack of pain was the first thing he noticed when he woke up. His body looked like it never been  
touched. Not only where the cuts and gashes from today's fight gone, but all of his old injuries disappeared as well. Even the scar that  
made him so easily identifiable had vanished. Looking down at his reflection as he learned over the railing, he looked like another  
gelert. He still wore the same clothes that he did before, but he felt different. It felt like a great weight had been lifted, but he still had small springs of that all too familiar 'worried' feeling that plagued him in life.

_Life ..._

This place wasn't Krawk Island, so did that mean he died? The air around him smelled so crisp and refreshing, and the daytime light was just enough to illuminate without causing harsh glares on even the smoothest surfaces. The way the sun reflected off the city of white buildings about a quarter mile away from the bridge he stood almost made the place glow . But he had his doubts.

Did he really belong here?

" You want to know the answers, huh? " Then, there was her, the woman he thought he'd never see again in his existence. She sat on the railing just inches away from him, her legs kicking over the side with her tail wagging behind. Quite simply she's the most beautiful teal furred gelert that ever walked the face of Neopia, and her dark brown (nearly black) hair was a wonderful contrast to her brightly hued fur. " Do you wish to know what's going on? "

" I am a bit curious " Kanrik replied smoothly, not taking his eyes off the water.

Giggling, the female gelert leaned back to the point where Kanrik almost reached out to catch her. Much to his relief he found she was in no danger of falling, even at that extreme angle. The grace of a dancer and the skill of a gymnast, he mused. Strange. Did he say that sometime before? " I suppose you can call this a holding place for loss souls who can't ascend into the afterlife yet. "

_So he had died_, and right there in front of Hannah no less. He barely met the girl, but the mental image he got weighed heavily on his stilled heart. " So my time is up? " He gave a weak chuckle. " I guess that this nice place won't be where I'll be spending eternity. "

" On the contrary, Kanrik. " The female straitened up, sitting upright with one leg crossed over the other. " It is rare that a pet actually be banished to eternal damnation and all that good stuff, but I didn't tell you that. " She smiled. " Whatever lay beyond our vision thought that very few pets are actually evil, but are just influenced by a greater evil. Because of this they can't be faulted for their actions, or punished for that matter. "

" What lay beyond? " He questioned. " You don't know who's pulling the strings? I thought it was-"

She closed her eyes. " No one knows. " Not even the faeries. "

" Hmph. They work in mysterious ways . "

Nodding, she'd open one eye to look back at him. " But in this place pets can decide to either accept their fate or try to make a better life for themselves and those around them. "

" I'm being given a second chance? " The gelert girl nodded. " But why? I'm the last pet that needs to be given a second chance to screw everything up! I - " His ears lowered against his hood. " I'm better off dead. Everyone will be better off with me dead. "

" Is that really what you think? " Now the gelert girl slid off the railing to face him. " It is true that you've done horrible things in the past, but if you're given a second chance don't you think that you'd try and make amends? "

" Why should I? " For a moment Kanrik got a bit of arrogance. " Like you said, I can't be punished for my sins. "

" Just because you can't go to tell because of what you've done doesn't mean you can't spend the rest of your existence suffering. " This time, it was the girl's turn to grin. " There are two planes of existence in the afterlife. In one plane people who think like you live in a world parallel to his or her own in redundancy. Eventually you'll get the sensation that you'll just keep living on and on forever and completely  
forget you died. " From there her expression grew serious. " In the other you relive the moments of your life that you enjoy the best with your friends in the prime of your life. It's paradise, but you'll never see it at this rate. "

Kanrik frowned slightly. " Either way I'll be sent back to Neopia... "

" You're just not willing to take a risk. " She shook her head, and then stepped towards him. " Kanrik, I'm not supposed to tell you this,  
but you _have_ to go back. This isn't only about you making amends for your sins, but this is about the survival of our Neopia. " Her dead took on a bright light for a moment. " You already know what this means. "

" Kamir .. " Kanrik sighed, turning away from her. " I thought things wouldn't play out like that if I just gave up now. "

Kamir reached out for him, grasping his shoulders with her tiny paws from behind. " The prophecy that struck fear in our people can go either way, Kanrik. It not necessarily what you don't do with your life. It foreshadows a terrible event that will occur depending on the decisions you make over the rest of your life. If you concede your life now, then it'd be the same as failure. "

Kanrik thought for a long moment about her words. For a moment, Kamir thought she lost him completely. Finally, he placed his gloved hands over her bare ones. " I thought what happened on Terror Mountain was the prophecy, but I can see that I was mistaken. I'm sorry for disappointing you, Kamir. "

Smiling, she pressed her body against his back in a tight embrace. " You can never disappoint me. I am proud of the man you've become, and I will continue to love you despite what the final outcome is. " Reaching for his chin, she pulled his eyes to focus on hers. " Are you going to try it again for me? " He nodded with confidence. " Then I'm afraid our time together has ended. "

Kanrik turned completely towards her, and held her by the waist. " Kamir, will I ever see you again? " He looked so hopeful .

" Our paths will cross again only if you've redeemed yourself in the eyes of the Great Spirit that watches over us all. " Her voice seemed so distant though she was 'physically' there with him. Taking his hands gently, she'd place a kiss on the back of each palm before pushing them back towards him. " I wish you luck, Kanrik. " She smiled .

He wanted to say something, but found that he couldn't. His hands went for his throat out of instinct, and that was the first place that was reintroduced to that all too familiar sensation of pain. Kanrik winced, closing his eyes as he took a step back. The pain that rushed over him was unbearable! He felt like screaming, but it lost its effect with the loss of his voice. How could he make that decision knowing he died in such agony?

Opening his eyes, he searched for Kamir, but found that she and the narrow bridge that they conversed on had disappeared an eerie void of darkness. Sound and light could not seep out through the shadows, and he felt himself getting steadily weaker due to extreme changes in gravity. I brought him to the 'ground' in the mysterious void, then to his knees .

_H-Hannah? What are you?._

A voice! Even in his disoriented state he could knew that voice belonged to the female blue aisha that pulled him out of the water. Still, the voice was faint and he couldn't tell what direction it was coming from.

Thud. He couldn't keep his body up any longer, so he fell forward onto the ground and soon into unconsciousness. It was up to fate what would happen to him from there. 


	11. Reassurance

This chapter is oh so very late. There were all sorts of technical problems getting this thing online. Originally, it was written on a computer at school that just REFUSED to allow The Ninja to save, e-mail it to herself, and so on. So in short The Ninja got it saved on her computer, but lost all the formatting. Hurray. -- 

The Ninja doesn't like Macs ... at all. 

... 

Moving right along here…

* * *

**Session 11**: Reassurance

* * *

Against his better judgment, Garin decided against setting sail. His reluctance to stay was quickly replaced through a round of pep talks from his crew and that grog that they all loved. Garin gathered the courage to confront her again, but was he willing to take 'no' for an answer this time? 

He left The Golden Dubloon briefly to retrieve something from his ship. With it in his pockets he felt much better about going through with it, but by time he got back he noticed that the atmosphere in the tavern changed. 

He felt overwhelming grief, but he didn't know why. 

" Watch the door. " The pirate told his crew as he headed into the back, and around the same time the barmaid Aisha slipped out of the storage room that Hannah disappeared into. " Miss? " Damn it, he forgot her name, but she seemed pretty upset. " Are you going to be all right? " 

" I'll be fine. " Angela shot back with a choked sob, her hands clasped over her mouth. " But I'm worried about Hannah. Her_ friend_ passed on just a little while ago, and she isn't taking it well at all. " 

" Then why are you leaving? " The usul locked eyes with her. " I know I wouldn't leave my friend alone like that. " 

" My boss is less than understanding about situations like this, and there are pets to be served out there. " She explained, looking past him towards the tavern. " If I could spare anymore time to console her, I would, but I can't which is why … I hoped you could go back there and talk some sense into her, or at least watch her. " 

Garin frowned a bit. " Watch her? " 

" Hannah acts really stupid when she gets like this. I don't want her doing anything rash. " She looked up at him, and smiled. " You were once her friend, so I thought that you'd be able to make her feel better in the meantime. " 

" I'll try my best. " It was all that he could promise her. " My crew mates are out there making sure that none of those Meridell scum start any trouble, so as the old saying goes – " 

" I understand. " It was unspoken between allies in the pirate territories that they watch out for their own. Bowing her head out of curtsy, Angela swayed past him and back into the crowded tavern. 

Garin didn't know what about the girl made him so edgy, but he felt as thought she held back a lot of information. It was more than the way she behaved after Jacques showed the crew his newfound weapon, but the way she acted in general. The fur on the back of his neck stood up, and settled once her scent was overpowered by the one of the girl that he wanted to please more than anyone. 

" Hannah? " He could hear her crying even before he opened the door, but he did the customary thing and announced himself before entering. 

" Leave me alone! " 

Or not. She didn't sound like she wanted to be bothered, but once again he went against his better judgment and pursue his ambitions. " It helps to have a shoulder to lean on. " He said through the door, hoping she'd reconsider. 

" Not yours … " Her voice came through much softer this time. 

" Want me to go get Jacques? " He joked, hoping to get a better response out of her. 

There was a pause this time. " What do you want from me? Huh, Garin? " 

" I just want to talk. " He sighed, leaning against the door. " No pressure at all. " 

Another pause made him consider giving up again, thinking it best to really leave her to her thoughts. Then ... " Make it quick. " He made progress. 

And he didn't disappoint. No sooner than she spoke did Garin make his way over, crouching beside her before she even had a chance to adjust her stance. 

Hannah imagined she must have looked a mess after the fall, the walk in the tunnels, and getting covered with the blood of a dead man even without the overwhelming grief that she felt now. Her normally clear eyes were pink from crying, a twin trail of tears staining her eyes down her cheeks. Through it all she still held the man's hand, trembling, and against her heaving chest. 

Personally, Garin had a bias again sitting next to anyone who had died, so he crouched beside the mourning usul. He didn't look at the body. " I'm going to be strait with you; I can't say that I can relate to what you're feeling now. " This caught the girl off guard, and she looked up at him out of confusion. " I lost my folks before I could even remember, and I worked my ass off not to lose my crew. For a moment … " He smiled sincerely. " I thought I did, but I can't say that it's the same. " 

" Why's that? " She asked, turning her body to face him. " Don't you consider them your family? " 

" Yes, but … " He shook his head pitifully. " I couldn't bring myself to cry over the loss. Even in those times that I thought the crew, Jacques … that they might have been dead, I couldn't bring myself to cry. I haven't cried since … " 

Hannah listened intensely. " Since? " 

" The night I came back. A few months before my skirmish with Scurvy Island I thought I finally made enough to keep my promise to you, so I came back to propose. " Hannah was about to strike back, but he continued. " By time I got here, you were gone. One of the barmaids told me that you had left with some guy that didn't look like a pirate after he flashed some money. " His ears folded back, his eyes on the ground. " I thought … that I came back too late, and the guy bought you off to marry him. " 

Taking it all in, Hannah bit her lip. If Garin had come just a few days earlier than that whole incident at Terror Mountain could have been avoided. Could. Knowing what she did know about the curse, Armin, the guild and Kanrik, would she have taken him up on his offer? Doing so would have saved her a lot of suffering, but what about Armin's tri – 

Armin! Her eyes grew wide with fear, returning to the horrors of reality. " Armin's still in the mansion! " She cried in anguish, her tears falling anew. " I left him with those horrible people to save you … and him! " She pointed towards the silent third pet in the room. " And the faeries only know what they're doing to him now because of me … " 

" You want the kid out? " Garin forgot his train of thought, for the moment. " I can send the crew in and – " 

" No! " She shook her head. " If you send your crew in, they'll retaliate and crush this island and everything around it. " 

" They wouldn't … " 

" I don't want to take that risk. " She looked down at her hands, and the other that she held within them. " But I do want to save Armin. Barging in would've been easy, but we'd have to do this the hard way … " 

" I don't care how we do it as long as it gets done! " Garin snapped, startling his female 'friend'. " If that's what it'll take to make you feel better, than I'll sure as hell do it. " 

" Thank you, but … " Hannah couldn't pull her eyes away from the corpse of the pet that was once her ally and enemy. " I'm not sure if we can do this on our own. " Her voice quivered, and she sniffled. " I just wish we had some help. " Her eyes closed again, and she pressed her cheek against Kanrik's gloves. 

All at once she remembered how he fought in the Ice Caves alongside her and Armin, as if they knew each other all along. The scenes played together backwards, to the point where she tried to kill him when he entered their camp. From there to his betrayal in The Bringer's tomb, to some rather sweet moments they shared traveling between Krawk Island and The Lost Desert. Those images burned her mind, and some of them her heart. 

Burning … 

She actually felt the sensation of burning! 

Garin wasn't sure what he was seeing, the mark on Hannah's arm started glowing again. He'd only seen it for a few brief seconds as they almost fell to their deaths earlier today, but this time the glow lasted much longer. It was not a light, airy, blue like before, but a solid blue that could relate to the nighttime sea. 

" Hannah, " He started as the light started to spread over her body, then the body of the dead pet. " What are you doing? " 

It was all that he could ask as he witnessed this phenomenon. Hannah reopened her eyes two minutes after she closed them, much calmer than before. Her trembling stopped, and the whites of her eyes were once again clear. For a moment her eyes were distant, but she found herself with a blink. She looked just as confused, maybe scared, by what happened as Garin did beside her. 

" Hannah? " He asked again, reaching over for her out of concern for his friend. 

COUGH! 

Garin jumped back, landing hard on his ass since neither he nor Hannah coughed. He tried to catch his breath, but he couldn't. The gears in his mind were churning out an explanation of what he'd just witnessed that he couldn't comprehend. 

The once limp hand that Hannah held was squeezing back. 

She … revived the dead? 

If that were true, then he could only think of one reasonable explanation for the events that had just transpired; Hannah had to be some sort of witch! 


	12. A Reunion

The Ninja was quite happy with the way this chapter turned out. The last few she struggled with, but this one flowed right onto the page. Hopefully you all are happy with it as much as she is. The next chapter will probably be the last one in the last one in The Golden Dubloon, which means we'll be moving forward!

* * *

Session 12: A Reunion

* * *

" You're a witch! " Garin scrambled to his feet and away from her. " You raised the dead! " 

Hannah followed him with her eyes. " I am **not **a witch! " She said, glaring at him. " And keep your voice down! " 

" You're the one yelling! " 

Hannah was about to really start yelling, but the groan from the other amongst them made her stop. " K-Kanrik? " She asked, leaning in a little closer. " Are you ... " Couldn't ask if he was okay since he _still _looked to be in quite a lot of pain. He looked up at her and motioned with his hand for her to come closer. 

" Hmm? " Hannah leaned in a little closer and Kanrik pushed himself up into her, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. Naturally she screamed, jerking back with her hands over her mouth. " W ... " She couldn't even begin to ask why! 

" I ... was aiming for your cheek. " Rasped the gelert, his voice still soft from his weakness. " I felt the need to thank you, so I did. " 

Blushing from embarrassment, Hannah turned her head away from him to stare at the ground. Thank her he for what? Angela was the one who pulled him out of the water. All she did was ... That light? Did _he _know what was happening? He couldn't have ... 

Garin didn't take her reaction as light embarrassment. He walked over and reached down for Hannah, taking her hand and pulling her to her feet. The swift motion nearly knocked her off balance, but he caught her with his other hand. " Why'd you have to go and do that, you bastard? " That feeling in the pit of his stomach ... He felt like he was going to explode! 

Kanrik looked from Hannah to the pirate much calmer than Garin expected. " Weren't you listening? " He asked, pushing himself to sit on the hay. For a moment his teeth were bared to hold back a grunt of pain, but it passed. " I wanted to thank her for what she did. " 

" You couldn't just say that? " Garin snapped, reaching into his vest. " I don't know who the hell you think you are, but we don't treat women like that around here. " 

Hannah looked at Garin wide eyed. 'Since when?' she groaned mentally. What she didn't expect was for Garin to pull out a blade that looked remarkably like Kanrik's and attacked ... 

Or at least tried to. He tried to swing the blade, but it gave off a spark of energy that forced him to drop it. Garin yelped, flexing his singed hand. 

" So that's where it went. " Kanrik mused as he picked up his blade. Out the corner of his eye he noticed Hannah giving him a horrorified look. " He'll be fine. These blades here are enchanted so only I can use them ... right anyway. " He shrugged. That way no one knew how strong they really were until he used them against them. 

Hannah nodded, then looked at Garin. " I'll get something to put on your hand in the meantime. " Kanrik might've thought it minor, but even with all of his fur she could see that he underestimated it. " And I suppose you'll need some pain killers too. " 

" Just a shot of whatever house drink this place has. " Kanrik corrected her, inspecting his blade before looking towards Garin. " Where's the other two? " 

" I'm not telling you. " He snapped, sounding much more snotty than before. 

The thief shrugged his shoulders. " I'll just have to gut you and search your corpse, then. " 

" Would you two **stop it**! " Hannah's voice made them jump. " I don't want you fighting! I'm so sick of the fighting! " Couldn't she have a moment's peace? 

" Fine. " Kanrik leaned against the wall next to the cot. " I won't bother myself with an urchin who think's it's okay to threaten me. " 

" Kanrik -- " 

" And I won't bother myself with an arrogant jackass who thinks he can do whatever he wants! " Garin took the chair on the opposite side of the room, by the door. 

Hannah bit her lip out of frustration, but didn't question either of them anymore. Instead she left the room to go down the hallway, wondering just why Garin behaved the way he did. He seemed perfectly fine until -- 

Just around the corner she saw a sight that made her shrink back against the wall. Sitting down at a table near the Dubloon's fireplace were Jeran and Lisha! Angela was already waiting their table, and The Black Pawkeet crew watched them anxiously from a distance. Jeran motioned for Angela to come a little closer in the middle of their order, and whispered in her ear. Hannah definitely couldn't hear what he said from the distance, but the shocked expression on her friend's face gave her a feeling of dread. 

" You'll receive your order shortly. " Angela gave the typical barmaid response before crossing the room towards the kitchen. Jacques made a motion for her to come to their table, but she frantically shook her head. Hannah had a bit more luck calling her over. " You see? " 

" How could I not? He's the only guy walking around in golden armor. " Hannah leaned against the inside of the hallway, her arms folded against her stomach. " He came looking for me. " 

" It's not what you think. " Angela looked back into the tavern before stepping closer to her. " He came here with a warning. " 

The usul tensed a bit. " A warning? " 

" He didn't give me the details. Jeran said that if I knew where Hannah was hiding now to tell her to leave Krawk Island, immediately. He said that giving away the details would be treasonous, but King Skarl plans on doing something that even he frowns upon as a knight. " 

" Damn it, Angie. " Hannah shook her head bitterly. " Just what do they want with me? I'm not important enough to disrupt life here. " She could only imagine what 'plans' they had in mind. 

" That's not all. " Angela circled around in front of Hannah, then bent down so they were eye level. " Jeran confirmed that they did have Armin in their custody. He was not harmed, but he was made to tell some very important information about your curse. " 

For the moment Hannah didn't care about that damned cursed. " Oh Armin. " She felt horrible dragging him into all of this. Running her hands over her eyes she brushed away the tears that would've fell otherwise. " Did they tell you where he was being held? " 

" Not specifically. He just said that he's in the cellblock on one of the Meridell Flagships. " 

Hannah took all the information and processed it slowly, but she didn't like the possibilities that lay ahead. " Don't tell him you saw me. " She didn't want him coming back here and ruining things even further between her slowly expanding group of outlaws. " And send Jacques back here, if you can. " 

Taking the hint, Angela put a hand on Hannah's shoulder in reassurance. " I'll do what I can. " Heading back into the tavern, Angela knew she had to endure a few uncomfortable questions and accusations in the meantime. 

Luckily, Hannah didn't need to cross into the tavern to get into the kitchen. She quickly moved to the other side of the doorway so prying eyes couldn't see her, and rushed down the hallway to the kitchen. There, she'd grab the first aid box reserved for the cooks and a pitcher to mix a drink in. Kanrik was the only one who asked for a drink, but by the faeries she could use one now! 

" Do you need help, miss Hannah? " 

The childish voice nearly made Hannah jump out of her fur. Whirling around she saw that yellow aisha standing there with a calm, all knowing, expression. It was one she became quite used to with Armin, but now it was just creeping her out. " What the hell? " She squeaked, pushing back against the counter. " How did you get back here? " And why didn't anyone _stop _her? 

" Apparently your 'guards' are only trained to go after knights. " Lisha grinned smugly, adjusting her glasses. " Being as small as I am, I easily snuck pass those other pirates and that bar girl too. " 

_That's just great,_ Hannah placed her head in her palms, shaking it lightly in utter embarrassment. " So you found me. " She said in the most unimpressed way possible. " Are you going to tell Jeran so he could take me away? " 

Lisha giggled in her own amusement. " There's no need for that; we're on your side! " Hannah snapped back to look at her, shocked. " I don't like what the King's doing to you or Armin anymore than you do, so I'm willing to help you get out of here. " 

" You want me to leave? " Thinking back to what Angela told her, she frowned. " I can't leave Armin with them. " 

" Don't worry about Armin. " Lisha reached out to put her hand on her forearm. " I'll make sure that nothing bad happens to him in the meantime, but there's nothing we can do about that now. Once I get back I'll tell Armin that you escaped safely, and that'll at least lighten his spirits. " 

Hannah didn't know what about this girl made her feel like she's a trustworthy creature, but she felt a lot better venting. " Tell him that I'll come for him as soon as I can. I won't forget. " 

Lisha nodded, then looked back towards the entrance of the kitchen. " We should get back. By now Skarl might notice that we're gone. " The aisha started towards the door, then looked over her shoulder. " Good luck, Hannah. " 

" Thank you. " 

Feeling a rush of relief come over her, Hannah hurriedly finished making the 'house special' for Kanrik. Taking the pitcher in one hand, a few mugs in the other, and the aide kit in her mouth she headed back towards the storage room. She could only hope that those who calmed down enough to have a reasonable conversation with by time she got there. 


End file.
